Dear Parents and Students,
October 13, 2009
Field Trip
We have a field trip scheduled to Historic Oakview on November 10.
Please be on the lookout for paperwork coming home. Please turn this in as
soon as possible. We will also send a form for payment for field trips and a
class t-shirt for your child.
If you are interested in chaperoning for our trip, be sure that you are a
Green Star worker. You may let me know by email if you are interested in
going with the class.
Homework
Homework Clarification – Please read carefully
Homework is expected to be completed by Friday. Encourage your child to do
the homework each night to avoid having too much in one night. Any
additional math sheets from the new Math Expressions program are expected to
be done as well by Friday. Optional Challenge Math is not required but is
available upon request.
Homework will change slightly this quarter. The children have gone through
the Word Wall Words for our grade during the first quarter. They will no
longer have an assignment for any words. The assignment will change to a
reading focus. Each evening your child will be asked to read for ten minutes
and answer the reading response question for the particular day of the week.
Please check your child's homework to make sure that he or she has written
the assignment using the following format...
Name Date
Book Title:
Author:
Write in complete sentences the answer to the reading response question that
is required for the homework that night.
I will look at the folders daily to make sure that a parent has signed under
the behavior color. If it hasn’t been initialed, the child will start the
day on orange. Please understand that we are building responsibility in our
second graders. Thank you for helping by checking this nightly.
Writing
The children are learning to go through the Writing Process. They are
prewriting first with a sketch and then drafting from the picture. We have
begun to practice revising by using questioning to help us add more details
to the picture. We are also working on sustaining the time on task for
writing for twenty minutes uninterrupted.
For the writing grade, the children will be required to write a personal
narrative that has at least ten sentences on topic. The piece will need a
beginning, a middle, and an end. It will need to contain some details and
elaboration.The writing piece will need to show that the child is using
punctuation and capitalization effectively. We are practicing these daily
during writing workshop.
Reading
At the end of each week, the children take a comprehension test over our
weekly story. If your child doesn't have any errors, I am attaching a Chili
Award. I will do this until I run out of them. Also, the child's name goes
up on the chart (the Comprehension Corral). They are doing a very good job
on their comprehension tests.
Social Studies
We will begin our unit of Changes Over Time. We will be using the pioneers
to help us understand how people and things have changed over time.
We now have our class pets! We have two African frogs! Great job, everyone
for earning money to buy them. Thanks again to Mrs. McCabe for going to buy
them for us!
Classroom Volunteers
Mrs. Vaughan and Mrs. Burns have volunteered to be our grade chairs. Thank
you so much! We will have our first learning experience coming up September
18. When you receive your class roster, please let these parents know if you
would be able to help with the learning experience by working with the
children or sending in materials.
Mrs. Seaboch has already done our class roster. Thank you, Mrs. Seaboch.
Mrs. Albin has volunteered to be our Character Ed. teacher. Thank you, Mrs.
Albin.
If you volunteered for other jobs, you will be notified soon.
Reminders:
• PE day is Friday. Please make sure your child has running shoes.
• Please remember to send a water bottle with your child.
• Please remember to send a sweatshirt for our cold classroom.
• Please remember to send in a healthy snack. I could use extra snack
if you are able to send in extra occasionally. Some children forget
frequently.
Mystery Readers
I will call or email you a few days before your visit. I will post a
schedule on the Teacherweb soon. Those of you who want to add your names may
email me. If you cannot read on a day that I wrote you in, just let me
know. Thank you to everyone who signed up to read!
Specials Schedule
Monday - Music
Tuesday - Media
Wednesday - Art
Thursday - Technology
Friday - P.E.
Your Teacher,
Mrs. Barr
Please read my short biography that is located under Teacher.
