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!
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