Upcoming Events

Thursday, September 27th:  All-School Hike

Please help your child come prepared with a lunch, plastic/metal water bottle, snacks, and appropriate footwear and clothing for walking/hiking all day.   Please email me as soon as possible if your child needs a bag lunch from the cafeteria for the hike.

Saturday, October 6th:  EMES Harvest Festival

Please see the flyers in your Friday Folder for more information.  This special event is a fundraiser for the EMES ECO program.

Monday, October 15th:  Picture Retakes

Please let the office know if your child will need a picture taken on this day.

Thursday, October 18th:  Open House with Students 5:30-6:30 pm

Families are invited to join us for this special event!

Wednesday, October 24th: Our First P.E. Lab

We are looking for volunteers who can chaperone and drive students for this field trip.  If you are interested in participating in P.E. Lab please let me know. You will also need to complete the volunteer packet paperwork. Drivers will also need to fill out an additional form.  Please see Karin Martin or Jane Badger in the office if you need this paperwork. You can also send me an email if you would like me to send it home in your child's folder. We would love to have families join us!

Classroom News

We had another busy week in second grade!  We started our first reading unit, "Second Grade Growth Spurt", by building our stamina to read for longer periods of time.  We discussed some ways to figure out how our books want to be read by looking at the cover, back blurb, and table of contents.  We had some fun reading There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves in a variety of different voices.  We also focused on finding a “just right” spot for reading, where we are comfortable and free of distractions so we can enjoy our texts.  

During our writing workshop, we started brainstorming topics and writing "small moments" narrative pieces. We talked about how writers choose meaningful stories to tell.  I read aloud one of my favorite books, Up North at the Cabin, which contains beautiful descriptions of a summer vacation by a lake.  We practiced different ways to plan out our writing pieces, such as telling our stories “across our fingers”, jotting down ideas at the top of each page, and rehearsing our stories with a partner.  Ask your child about his or her "small moment" story ideas! It is great practice for students to tell their stories to others before writing them down!

Our math class continued working on making 10 with 2 or more addends in many different ways.  Each day, students have created ways to make 10 using Cuisenaire rods for our “gallery walk”. They are given a certain number of addends that they can use that day to make their “gallery walk” piece.  Then, we walk around our “gallery” to view each other’s ideas, record them in our journals, and talk about what what we have noticed. Students have also been using these make 10 facts to help them solve longer strings of numbers, such as 5+6+2+4+5, by making groups of 10 first.  

During morning meeting and "discovery" times, we have been working on building our classroom community.  We created our class "expectations" tree, which lists our class rules/expectations that we have all agreed to follow, such as being respectful with our words and actions, following the school-wide KHFOOTY (Keep Hands Feet and Other Objects to Yourself) expectations, and taking care of our classroom materials.  I have been so impressed with the way that students are learning new routines, helping each other, and sharing their ideas with the group!

Please let me know if you are unable to access the online EMES newsletters/communication so I can let the office know that you need a paper copy.

Cub Scout Event

Classroom News

This week, we continued building our classroom community by practicing important routines 
and discussing our school expectations: Being Safe, Respectful, and Responsible.  We also 
started to create our classroom expectations.

During math time, we have been using Cuisenaire rods and written expressions to show many 
ways to Make 10 using different numbers of addends.  We have also played math games, 
such as Plus 1 or 2 Bingo and Make 10.

During literacy and writing times, students had a chance to share their All About Me books 
with their classmates, review how to correctly form capital and lowercase letters, and learn 
about how to pick a “just right book”.  Students listened to read aloud books by Kevin Henkes, 
such as Sheila the Brave and Chester’s Way.  These wonderful books provide lots of 
opportunities to talk about friendship skills.

I have also taught students many different movement-based activities over the past two weeks.  
Ask your child to show you how to play Mirror, Shaping, Circle Pass, and Moving Through Space.

Next Wednesday, September 12th, classroom and allied arts teachers are hosting information 
sessions for parents at our Parent Information Night.  On October 18th, we will have an 
Open House for students and families together. I look forward to seeing you at these events!

Have a wonderful weekend!  Enjoy this cooler weather!

Upcoming Events and Classroom Info:

Parent Information Night: Wednesday, September 12th from 5:30 - 6:30

Picture Day:  Thursday, September 13th

All-School Hike: Friday, September 21st (Rain Date Friday, September 28th)

EMES Harvest Festival (ECO Fundraiser): Saturday, October 6th

Picture Retake Day: Monday, October 15th

Open House with Students: Thursday, October 18th 5:30 - 6:30