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Tuesday, December 18, 2018

Chex Mix Reminder

CHEX MIX IS COMING!  CHEX MIX IS COMING!
Chex Mix Sale!
WHEN:  Wednesday, December 19th
COST:  $1.00 per bag
WHY:  All proceeds to benefit
THE WORLD SANTA PROJECT
The Santa Project buys new hats, coats, boots, mittens, etc. for children in Central Vermont.
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THIS EVENT SPONSORED BY
THE EMES 2nd/3rd GRADERS!


Sunday, December 16, 2018

E.C.O.: Becoming Snowshoe Hares


On Wednesday, we wrote and drew in our E.C.O. journals, telling about what we know and what we want to learn about snowshoe hares. Then, on Thursday, we went out to the woods for a lesson about snowshoe hares and the adaptations that help them survive during the winter in Vermont.  
First, we tried to jump like snowshoe hares.  We learned that hares can bound up to 12 feet in a single leap and that they have been clocked running up to 30 miles per hour on ice!  We discussed how their hind feet are covered in fur and how they can spread their toes apart to increase the surface area of their feet.  These special features allow them to walk on top of snow when many other animals sink into the deep snow. 


Next, we played a predator/prey tag game as we became hares and their various predators, such as foxes, coyotes, and owls. 

 
 

For our main lesson, we learned about how snowshoe hares change colors which allows them to camouflage themselves in their habitat during different seasons.  Students worked in small groups, taking turns being a brown snowshoe hare, a white snowshoe hare, or a predator. The "hares" hid their fabric hares somewhere in their "territory".  Then, the predator had to try to find the hares. Groups kept track of which hare was easier to find. Students discovered that in the late fall, there were good places for both the brown and white hares to be camouflaged, such as on the snow, under or near a fallen tree, and in an area with lots of smaller trees or branches.


 

 

We also saw some real snowshoe hare tracks in the snow!


Thursday, December 6, 2018

Chex Mix Kindness Project


CHEX MIX KINDNESS PROJECT
Grades 2/3 Community Service Project

For many years the students in our school have completed a community service project during the holidays.  The project is THE WORLD newspaper’s “SANTA PROJECT”.  This project collects money and buys new coats, hats, boots, and mittens for Central Vermont children.  This year, we will once again, make and sell “Chex Mix” as a fundraiser for this project.  We will make the mix on Tuesday, December 18th and sell it on Wednesday, December 19th to students, staff and families of EMES.  The cost will be $1.00 per bag.

In order for this project to be a success we are asking families for donations of mix supplies.  It is truly amazing and fun for the kids to see all the great contributions we receive each year.  We need many, many boxes of cereal it can be Chex or a generic variety, it doesn’t matter the brand!  We cannot accept any nuts or products that contain any honey-nut ingredients.  Please check ingredients before sending in contributions, pretzels can be especially tricky!  Following is a list of types of cereals, etc. we can use:
  • Wheat Chex                                    Goldfish style crackers
  • Corn chex                                        Cheez-it style crackers
  • Rice chex                                        Small pretzels-check labels!
  • Cheerios (no honey nut)                    Mini melba toast                   

We will supply the spices, butter and baggies for the project.  Please send in your donations by Friday, December 14th so we can plan accordingly.

Thank you for your generosity in this important event.  We know how expensive groceries are, so we really appreciate your help in teaching this important lesson of giving to our students.

Please don’t hesitate to call or e-mail us with any questions!  If you can help bake or bag the mix the afternoon of Tuesday,December 18h, please let us know.  THANK YOU!!

Sincerely,
Beth Parker
Claire Gallagher

Laura Giammusso

Upcoming Events

Hour of Code:  Thursday, December 6th, 3:45-5:00 (Library)

Scholastic Book Order Due Date:  Friday, December 7th

EMES School Store:  Friday, December 7th, 830-9:00 (Library)

E.C.O. Lesson: Thursday, December 13th (morning)  
Please help your child dress warmly to spend the morning outdoors.  Thanks!

R.I.F. Book Giveaway: Friday, December 14th

Gifts for Giving:  Tuesday, December 18th (snow date- Dec. 19th)

2nd/3rd Grade Chex Mix:  Tuesday, December 18th
This is the day that we prepare the Chex Mix.
We need adult volunteers to help us bake and bag the Chex Mix.  Please let me know if you are available to help.  Thanks!

Chex Mix Sale:  Wednesday, December 19th

Classroom Holiday Party:  Friday, December 21st (time- to be determined)
If you would like to contribute an item for the party, please send me an email or fill out the form that is coming home tomorrow.  Thanks!

Holiday Break:  Saturday, December 22nd to Tuesday, January 1st

Band/Chorus Concert:  Thursday, January 17th, 6 pm (gym)

K-3/Chorus Concert:  Thursday, January 24th, 5:30 pm (gym)

Sunday, December 2, 2018

Hour of Code Event: December 6th



 














Hour of Code
(hosted by U32 Robo Raiders )
Dec 6th from 3:45 - 5:00 pm
Location: EMES Library

Hour of Code at EMES: While there will be opportunities for EMES students to participate in Hour of Code activities during the school day, the Dec 6th afterschool event gives students time to dig deeper into coding.  This year’s theme is being creative with code.

What is the Hour of Code? The Hour of Code started as a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify "code", to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. It has since become a worldwide effort to celebrate computer science, starting with 1-hour coding activities but expanding to all sorts of community efforts. This grassroots campaign is supported by over 400 partners and 200,000 educators worldwide.


When is the Hour of Code? The Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. The 2018 Computer Science Education Week will be December 3-9, but you can host an Hour of Code all year-round. Computer Science Education Week is held annually in recognition of the birthday of computing pioneer Admiral Grace Murray Hopper (December 9, 1906).

Who can attend?  Code.org has activities for pre-readers and up.  In addition to this year’s new Dance Party and Minecraft activities (for grades 2 and beyond), we will have coding projects ready to go that are appropriate for all EMES students.

Questions?  Contact Arlyn Bruccoli
abruccoli@u32.org

Sunday, November 25, 2018

Geometry

During the first quarter, we learned about two-dimensional shapes, focusing on polygons such as triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, and hexagons.  We used geoboards, pattern blocks, and shape sort cards to help us build, sort, label, and describe 2-D shapes.  Some of the key vocabulary words we used to describe our shapes were:  sides, angles, and vertex, and parallel. 

We reviewed how "tri" means "three" and we brainstormed a list of "tri" words, such as:  triangle, triceratops, tricycle, tripod, and Triwizard Tournament.  We also discussed whether all squares are rectangles and if all rectangles are squares.

Students seemed to enjoy this hands-on mini-unit.  We will return to our study of geometry in December to learn more about two- and three-dimensional shapes.









Owl Moon Arts Integration Projects


During the first quarter, our first writing unit of the year focused on "small moments" narrative writing.  During this unit, we frequently revisited our mentor text, Owl Moon, looking for ideas and inspiration.  We learned how the author, Jane Yolen, used repetition, comparisons, and descriptions in her writing as she stretched out her story.  After reading the story aloud, students worked in small groups to place sticky notes on sentences or phrases that they thought were examples of good writing. Then, each student chose a few phrases and wrote about why he or she thought they were interesting.
We selected six of these phrases and created a movement phrase/dance that showed our ideas about what each descriptions means.  Students made choices about how to represent each movement through dance rather than acting it out.  They also had to make decisions about whether to move in unison or around the circle one by one, how to add different levels, and how many times to repeat a movement.

Once we had finished putting together each movement, we practiced our dance while listening to George Winston's song "December", which matched the mood of the story very well.  The phrases we chose were:

"The trees stood still like giant statues"

"The moon was so bright the sky seemed to shine."

"Somewhere behind us, a train whistle blew, long and low, like a sad, sad song."

"It was as quiet as a dream."

"The moon made his face into a silver mask."

"For one minute, three minutes, maybe even a hundred minutes, we stared at one another."

"Then the owl pumped its great wings and lifted off the branch like a shadow without sound."

On another day, students picked a sentence or scene from Owl Moon to use as inspiration as they drew and painted an illustration of their own.  It was interesting to hear students describe the important details from the book that they wanted to include in their illustrations.  Often there were similarities between the details in their illustrations and in our dance.

Throughout this unit, we have been inspired by the writing choices Jane Yolen and other authors make.  It has been exciting to see students trying out these "craft" moves, such as making comparisons, to lift the level of their own writing!












Tuesday, November 20, 2018

E.C.O.: Educating Children Outdoors: Becoming Black Bears and Making Maps of the E.C.O. Woods

 Becoming Black Bears

Last Thursday, we had our second E.C.O. lesson of the year.  During this lesson, we learned about black bears and how they prepare for the winter.  We learned that although they sleep for a good part of the winter, they are not considered true hibernators.  Many students were surprised to learn that bear cubs are born in January or February.

We learned about bear dens and then students had a chance to work independently or in groups to build their own dens.  It was exciting to see our great teamwork and problem-solving skills in action in the woods and to watch the different methods of building.  We also had a chance to play our Owl and Mouse tag game again at the start of the lesson to help us warm up on a very chilly morning! Back in the classroom, students wrote and created illustrations in their E.C.O. journals to show what they know and learned about black bears.

 

 

 

 

 





Making Maps of the E.C.O. Woods

The weather for our first lesson E.C.O. lesson was absolutely perfect!  We started the lesson with a sharing circle where students shared either a "nature note' or something they are thankful for.  Then, we played an Owl and Mouse tag game.  Students took turns being the predators and prey.

Next, we ate snack and listened to the Native American story about how owl and rabbit got their shapes long ago.  Our main lesson focused on building maps of the important places in the E.C.O. woods.  Students worked in pairs or small groups to create their maps using sticks, rocks, leaves, bark, and other natural objects.  Afterwards, each group did a great job sharing their map














Classroom News

This week, we learned about Tisquantum and the history of the first Thanksgiving by reading a Scholastic News article, watching several short Scholastic videos, and playing a trivia game.  While reading the article with a partner, students practiced the “stop, cover, think, tell” strategy to help us share our thinking and deepen our understanding about what we read. Through our discussions, we learned about what life was like for members of the Wampanoag tribe and for Pilgrims in the 1620s.  We also compared how life in the past was similar and different from today.

On Monday afternoon, students participated in an All-School Celebration since we filled up our school PBIS “tree”.  Celebration choices included sledding, art time, Thanksgiving crafts, a Wild Kratts video, rubber band bracelet making, and forest choice time.  Nice work, team!

Best wishes for a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!  I am very thankful to work in this supportive community with such a wonderful class!

Sunday, November 11, 2018

Upcoming Events

Parent/Teacher Conferences: Monday, November 12th (No School for Students)

E.C.O. Lesson: Thursday, November 15th (morning)
Please help your wear/bring appropriate clothing and footwear for spending the morning outdoors.  Students should wear warm layers to help them feel comfortable with the colder temperatures.  Students should have:

  • Warm coat or jacket
  • Warm, waterproof boots
  • Warm socks
  • Waterproof gloves or mittens
  • Hat
  • Snow or rain pants

Please help your child remember to have indoor shoes to change into afterwards.

Thanksgiving Break:  Wednesday, November 21st-Friday, November 23rd

Classroom News

What a busy and productive week in second grade!  In math, we have been working on using a variety of efficient strategies to solve math problems.  We are learning how to “decompose” and “recompose” numbers as we add. For example, when solving 6+8, we could:

Take 2 from the 6 and give it to the 8 to make 10.  Then, we can add the four (from the 6) to the 10 to make 14.

We could take 4 from the 8 and give it to the 6 to make 10.  Then, we could add the other 4 to the 10 to make 14.

Or… we could take 1 from the 8 and give it to the 6 to make 7+7, a doubles fact that equals 14.

We share our thinking in discussions and as we play math games with our partners.  I have included a packet of math of math games in this Friday Folder. It would be great if students can play these games at home and discuss their strategies with you.

During our reading workshop, students are working independently and in pairs to read a chapter book that has 2 main characters.  As they read, they are comparing the main characters in their books to figure out how they are alike and different. Each student is recording their ideas on sticky notes.  Then, they will use the sticky notes as they participate in discussions and to complete a Venn diagram about the characters.

During our discovery time, we have been learning about where we are in the world, zooming out from town, state, country, continent, planet and beyond.  We also have been learning the names and locations of the continents and oceans.

Over the next few days, I will be updating our classroom blog with some of the special projects and lessons from this quarter, such as our Owl Moon arts integration lessons, geometry mini-unit, and our first E.C.O. lesson.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!  I am looking forward to parent/teacher conferences next week!