ABC’s of Second Grade

 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q U R S T U W X Y Z

A

A-Z Readers - These are leveled books that allow students to read at the level that helps them become fluent readers.

Absences – If your student has to miss school for any reason, please contact both the office and me.  There may or may not be work that needs to be made up.  Remember – there is no way to replace the learning your child missed by not being in school.

Arrivals – Students are able to enter the building at 7:20, but must wait by their lockers until 7:30.  Students are tardy if they are not in the classroom at 7:40.

B 

Breakfast - Please make sure your student has a healthy breakfast. It is a long time before lunch and there is a lot to learn. Children have a difficult time concentrating and learning on an empty stomach. Lincoln School has a breakfast program. The students can purchase the meal before 7:30 and eat in the classroom.

Birthday Treats – We love to celebrate birthdays!  You typically do not need to let me know ahead of time if you are sending in treats; we can usually make it work!  Please send in store bought, ready to serve treats.

Birthday Invitations – Please do not send birthday invitations to school to be passed out unless they include all the children, or all boys or all girls.  This can lead to hurt feelings.

Baggie Books – Every week your child will bring home several books in a bag.  Please make sure these are read several times and returned by the due date.  If the books are late, then your child will NOT bring home books that week.  If books are not returned, I will not send home any more books and there may be replacement costs for the books and the bag.

C

Communication – Please contact me anytime with any questions you may have.  You may contact me by phone before or after school or by email anytime.  I will always get back to you as soon as possible.  We can also stay in touch by using the Friday Folders and agendas.

Clothing – Please make sure your child is dressed appropriately for both the weather and for school. 

D

Donations – If you have any extra school items or extra craft items at home our entire class will benefit from your donation.  Pencils always seem to be a needed item.  I think there is a pencil monster hiding in the closet!

E

Emergencies – You will be contacted if your child is injured while at school.  Please keep the school nurse and me updated with all important medical information, including allergies.  It is also important that we have a complete list of updated phone numbers in case we need to contact you.  If possible, a name of someone to be contacted in the event we are unable to reach you.

F

Friday Folders – The majority of completed school work will come home in the Friday Folder.  This will be the time to look for the new list of spelling words, the new book of the week, the weekly newsletter, behavior chart (please sign and return every Monday), and notes from me.  Please date all notes to me and initial after you have read a note from me.  The section for writing notes is for adults only.  If you have a note regarding transportation or medicine please send it on a different piece of paper so it can be sent to the office

G

 Great Expectations – I do have high expectations for every child in my class and I will always encourage them to have high expectations for themselves.

H

Homework – I expect your child to practice reading, math facts and spelling words nightly.  Please have your child review addition and subtraction math facts every night.  This repetition will increase speed and accuracy and will be invaluable as we move on to the more difficult math concepts.  Triangle flash cards will be coming home.  Spelling tests will be given on Thursday of every week.  I will send home the results in the Friday Folder.  The new list will also go home in the Friday Folder.  Your child will have a week to practice.  Occasionally your child might not finish work in class; if enough time has been given in class the word ‘homework’ will be written on the top of the page with the date and is expected to be finished for the next day.  The student always has the option of using his/her free time in class to complete the work.  Homework should only take around 20 minutes each night, please contact me if your child is having difficulty or work is taking a lot longer.

Handwriting – We begin learning cursive in after winter break!  This is an exciting skill and the students can’t wait to learn!

I

 Interest – Ask your child what exciting things s/he did at school each day.

J

 Journals – We have journal time every day.  This is a time for reflection and a time to practice writing in an informal setting.  Writing, reading and spelling go hand in hand.

K

Keep Reading – Encourage your child to read as often as possible.  Even though they can seem so big, second graders still like to have books read to them, and this is great for vocabulary and comprehension.

L

Lunch Money – Please send lunch money in an envelope with student’s name.  Lunches are $1.50 and milk is $0.40.  If you have special needs, please contact the school secretary. Lunch is from 11:20 - 12:05.

M

Medicine – Must come with a doctor’s note and be administered by the school nurse.  Cough drops are allowed, but must be kept at the teacher’s desk with a note.

Math – We are using the Houghton Mifflin math series.  There are many different concepts we will be covering this year.  Most will build on skills your child gained in first grade.  Knowing their math facts is the single most important skill a second grader can have – it will help with every other concept that is taught.

N

Newsletter – I will send home a weekly newsletter in the Friday Folder.  It should keep you updated on all the great things we are doing at school.

O

Open House – Our Open House should be sometime in October.  I hope to see you all there!

P

Parent – Teacher Conferences – Please feel free to schedule one whenever you would like. Offical conferences are held in November. Report cards will go home every nine weeks.

PTO – I encourage all of you to get involved!  Studies have shown that students whose parents are involved do the best in school!  You only have to give as much as you are able.

Q

Quickly – How fast the year will fly by!

R

Rules – Please read and go over both our classroom and school rules with your child. 

Reading Logs – You will find the monthly forms in your child’s agenda.  These need to be filled out daily.  Your child may do the writing.  This is the most important homework I will assign!  Please take it seriously.  I expect at least 20 minutes a day for a total of at least 500 minutes a month.  This will count towards your child’s reading grade.

Report Cards – These will go every nine weeks.  Please see the separate paper for the grading scale.  The second grade team will also include reading and writing rubrics in the report card envelope.  These rubrics should help you understand your child’s grades in these subjects.

S

Scholastic Book Club – I will be sending home book club forms for you to purchase books at a reduced rate.  You do not have to order, but you could encourage your child to use their allowance – some books are only $0.95.  Checks must be made out to the book club!

Science – We will be covering many topics in science this year.  Some of these topics include the water cycle, weather, matter, fossils and dinosaurs, and the human body.  Science is not graded which allows us to really enjoy learning without any pressure.

Social Studies – Mrs. Bowker will teach Social Studies to our class.  The topics she covers will not be graded.

T  

Toys – Please discourage your child from bringing toys to school.  They could get lost or broken.

Tardies – Please try to have your child to school on time everyday.  If your child is tardy he/she will need to stop in the office for a tardy slip first.

U

Units – We will be studying several different units.  We will do special projects and sometimes go on field trips to learn more about what we are studying.

V

Volunteers – We love to have you in our class!!  If you are unable to make it during school hours, but want to help just let me know, and I can find special projects that can be done from home.  We also would love for family members to come with us on field trips – the more the merrier.  When coming to help in our class please remember to sign in at the office first and turn off your cell phone so you don’t accidentally disrupt our learning.

W

We Are A Team – Please feel free to talk to me any time you have comments, concerns, or questions regarding your child.  You are the expert, and I am only blessed to be part of one year of your child’s life.  Please share any information that will help your child have a successful year!

Writing – We will be doing a lot of writing this year!  Writing and reading go hand in hand.  Better readers make better writers…….Each student will have a writers notebook, a writing journal, and a reading journal.  We will focus on the 6 traits of writing – ideas, word choice, conventions, sentence fluency, organization, voice.

X

EXperiences – We will have many new fun and exciting experiences in second grade.

Y

You Are Important – You are so valuable to your child’s education.  Thank you for such a wonderful child!

Z

Zzzzzz -  Plenty of rest is very important for second graders!