December 8, 2014

A note from Mrs. Tabor…

      Thank you for helping us collect cans during our canned food drive.  I can honestly say that I’ve never seen so many cans!  We will let you know later this week about our total.  As we get involved in holiday activities, please remember that every day in school is an opportunity to grow as a learner.  With that in mind, please stay as close as you can to normal after school routines.  This will ensure that your children are well rested and ready to learn! 

It’s not too late sign up for the 2nd grade Girl party! This fundraiser for the Girl Party is next week! The link to sign up is: 

Girls - http://vols.pt/E5uoyZ

·         Scholastic Book Fair is here this week.  Our shopping day is Friday, December 12^th at 10:30.  If you have time to help with shopping, I could use a parent or two to help.  However, parents should not feel obliged to shop with your children this time.

•    Please send in all items for the Husky Helping House child by Tuesday, December 9^th.   

•    Box Tops – please send them in!!!  For every Box Top we collect, 10 cents is added to our class budget!

·         Holiday sing along: you may hear your child talk about our sing along, but this is a student-only activity.  Our gym doesn’t have the capacity to hold students and parents.

•    Our class holiday party will be on Friday, December 19th at 9am.  Students should bring in their own sweet treat and drink to enjoy during the party.          

 Reminders

*Keep Flat Stanley going! We are really enjoying the letters that we have received so far.

*Send in a healthy snack and water bottle every day!

*Now that the weather is turning colder, please make sure your child comes to school with a coat, hat, and gloves.  There have been many days recently where students have come to school and not been prepared for outside recess.  Our recess is at 10:00 or 10:30am, and we will go outside unless it is below 32 degrees (with the wind chill factor). 

*Be sure to sign and return your students planner every day! Don’t forget to record their reading!

What are we learning?

 Reading Workshop

Last week we began our fourth ELA Unit ”The Wild West.”   This week, we will begin exploring how literary elements help us understand tall tales, and relating to life in the 1800s.  We will also learn about collective nouns (i.e. a herd, a tribe, a flock).

Writing Workshop

We will continue to examine literary elements of tall tales in Writing Workshop, as well. We will learn about hyperboles, and how they are used in tall tales.  Lessons this week will lead into writing our own tall tales after the winter break.

 Word Study

This week’s word wall words are: 

Wash, hot, sing, enough, week

Long vowel group:  short and long u (spelled u_e)

Other vowel group:  short e and long e  (ee, ea)

r-influenced vowel patterns group:  or, ore, oar

 Math

We will continue to practice using frames and arrows to solve addition and subtraction problems.  We will also learn about using a function machine to determine how to solve addition and subtraction problems, as well as practicing subtraction strategies.

 Social Studies

This week we will continue our social studies unit on westward expansion.  We will start with the 13 colonies, then learn about the Louisiana Purchase, Louis and Clarke and Sacajawea.

Habit of the Week:  We will be focusing on how important it is to be grateful for what we have, and how to help those in need.  We will tally our canned food collection, and wrap gifts for our Harmony Helping House friend.

Related Arts Schedule

Monday-Friday

Art

December 1, 2014

A note from Mrs. Tabor…

      Please don’t forget to sign up for the 2nd grade Boy and Girl parties! This fundraiser The Boy Party is next week! The link to sign up is: 

Boys - http://vols.pt/7xVnwH

Girls - http://vols.pt/E5uoyZ

•    This is the last week of our Canned Food Drive!  Please send in all items by Friday, December 5th. NO HOMEWORK THIS WEEK FOR THOSE WHO BRING IN 5 OR MORE CANNED GOODS!!!

•    Please send in all items for the Husky Helping House child by Thursday, December 9^th. 

•    We are in need of a few rolls of holiday wrapping paper for our HHH items if anyone is able to donate.  We could also use some gift tag labels. 

•    We will be attending the Nutcracker in a Nutshell ballet on Thursday, December 4th.  Students should dress up on this day.  Students should also pack their lunch.  We will eat lunch at school but will be back later than our normal lunch time.  Students should also remember to bring their morning snack so that they can eat before we board the buses. 

•    Box Tops – please send them in!!!  For every Box Top we collect, 10 cents is added to our class budget!

•    Our class holiday party will be on Friday, December 19th at 9am.  Students should bring in their own sweet treat and drink to enjoy during the party.          

 Reminders

*Keep Flat Stanley going! We are really enjoying the letters that we have received so far.

*Send in a healthy snack and water bottle every day!

*Now that the weather is turning colder, please make sure your child comes to school with a coat, hat, and gloves.  There have been many days recently where students have come to school and not been prepared for outside recess.  Our recess is at 10:00 or 10:30am, and we will go outside unless it is below 32 degrees (with the wind chill factor). 

*Be sure to sign and return your students planner every day! Don’t forget to record their reading!

What are we learning?

 Reading Workshop

This week we will wrap up our third ELA Unit, A Season for Chapters.   Students will practice identifying the main idea of mult-paragraph fiction text.  Then we will start our fourth unit, The Wild West.  We will begin this unit by discussing how character’s voices should sound when reading aloud.  Students will practice fluency and expression using Reader’s Theatre scripts about tall tale stories. 

Writing Workshop

In Writing we will begin Unit 4 by examining the artwork of several artists whose work from the 1800’s depicted Native Americans and cowboys.  We will look at the paints of George Catlin and Frederic Remington.  We will also look at photographs taken by Edward Curtis.  Students will practice using questioning as a thinking strategy and record their noticings.  Then we will begin to learn about opinion writing.

 Word Study

This week’s word wall words are: 

Friend, party, seen, warm, fall

Long vowel group:  short and long o (spelled o_e)

Other vowel group:  short u and long u  (u_e, _ui_, and oo)

r-influenced vowel patterns group:  ir, ire, ier

 Math

This week we will learn about perimeter (the distance around a shape).  Students will practice measuring objects and then find the perimeter by adding up the sides.  We will also practice solving money word problems.  Last we will learn how to use frames and arrows to solve addition and subtraction problems. 

 Social Studies

This week we will begin our social studies unit on westward expansion.  We will first locate the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains, as well as the Mississippi River on a map.  Then we will compare/contrast modes of transportation used in the 1800’s compared to today.  We will discuss what it was like to travel west on a wagon as a pioneer, and what items would be important to take on this long journey.  We will also learn about Daniel Boone, and make candles!    

Habit of the Week:  We will be focusing on how important it is to be grateful for what we have, and how to help those in need.

Related Arts Schedule

Monday-Friday

Technology

November 17, 2014

A note from Mrs. Tabor…

      Please remember this is our giving season!  Information was sent home last week about the Harmony Helping House, and the Second Grade Canned Food Drive.  Every year, it is so inspiring to see how motivated our children are to help those in need.  Please help in any way that you can.  If you are interested in purchasing an item for our HHH student, please fill out and return the form that was sent home last week so that I can assign you an item.

            Students will be bringing home a field trip permission slip to attend the Nutcracker in a Nutshell.  The performance will be on December 4^th.  We are only able to take ONE parent chaperone due to limited seating.  If you are interested in attending, please check the box on your child’s form and we will have a drawing. 

      Progress reports will come home next Friday, November 21^st. 

       

 Reminders

*Keep Flat Stanley going! We are really enjoying the letters that we have received so far.

*Send in a healthy snack and water bottle every day!

*Now that the weather is turning colder, please make sure your child comes to school with a coat, hat, and gloves.  There have been many days recently where students have come to school and not been prepared for outside recess.  Our recess is at 10:00 or 10:30am, and we will go outside unless it is below 32 degrees (with the wind chill factor). 

*Be sure to sign and return your students planner every day! Don’t forget to record their reading!

What are we learning?

 Reading Workshop

This week we will continue our third ELA Unit, A Season for Chapters.  This week’s focus is on non-fiction text features. We will learn about photographs, captions, close-ups, labels, types of print, table of contents, maps, and an index.  We will practice identifying these text features and learn how they help us when we read non-fiction.  

Writing Workshop

In Writing students will research an animal.  Students will record facts about their animal’s body/adaptations, diet (food), habitat, and fun facts.  Students will use their research to write informative paragraphs about their animal.  Students will also use what they learn about text features to create a text feature that goes along with each paragraph.  

Word Study

This week’s words are: Pick, great, fly, during, ball

Long vowel group:

Other vowel group:

Blends group:

 Math

This week we will learn and practice using strategies that help us to add and subtract.  We will practice doubles as a strategy, turn around facts, doubles +1 and +2, subtraction from addition, and revisit fact families.

 Science

This week we will continue our Plants science unit.  Students will investigate whether plants grow towards the sun, investigate if plants need air & water to grow, determine if leaves need sunlight, and learn ways seeds are scattered.  

Habit of the Week:  We will be focusing on how important it is to be grateful for what we have, and how to help those in need.

Related Arts Schedule

Monday	Tuesday-Friday
Music	P.E.

November 10, 2014

A note from Mrs. Tabor…

This week, we are beginning our giving season at Harmony.  You will be receiving information about the Harmony Helping House, and the Second Grade Canned Food Drive.  Every year, it is so inspiring to see how motivated our children are to help those in need.  Please look for information about these events, and help in any way that you can.

Also, Tuesday is Veteran’s Day, so we will be learning about the meaning behind this holiday. 

 Harmony Elementary wants to remember those who may be in need at this time.  The 2^nd graders are sponsoring a food drive and hopes to meet our goal of filling twelve grocery carts with non-perishable goods.  We would like to ask your help and assistance with this worthwhile project.

We are collecting canned goods and any other non-perishable boxed foods. If you would prefer to donate money for 300 hams, bread, milk, sugar, apples, potatoes, peanut butter, sugar and pancake mix; simply write a check out to SOICC in the amount desired.

This food will be used to assist 300 Oldham County families to have a brighter holiday.  Thank you for your support in helping our children to learn about caring and sharing with others.  As adults we want to set a good example and we would ask that if you come to school to attend a play, concert or party, would you try to remember to bring a food item for our basket?  The food needs to be in our school by Dec. 5, 2014

 Reminders

*Keep Flat Stanley going! We are really enjoying the letters that we have received so far.

*Send in a healthy snack and water bottle every day!

*Be sure to sign and return your students planner every day! Don’t forget to record their reading!

What are we learning?

 Reading Workshop

This week we will continue our third ELA Unit, A Season for Chapters. This week’s focus is on the elements of Poetry.  We will learn about rhythm, rhyme, repeated lines and alliteration.

Writing Workshop

As we study Poetry in Reading, we will also explore writing our own poems, including Haikus and shape poems.

  

Word Study

This week’s words are: yellow, place, children, seven, eight

Long vowel group:

Other vowel group:

Blends group:

 Math

This week, we will begin a new unit on addition and subtraction strategies.  We will focus on learning key vocabulary that help us solve word problems.

 Science

We will begin our unit on Ecosystems.  This week, we will discuss the parts of a seed and what is needed for a seed to germinate.

Habit of the Week:

Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood.  As we learn about those in need, and how we can help them, we will be reviewing how important it is to seek first to understand.

Related Arts Schedule

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Art	Music	Music	Music	Music

November 3, 2014

A note from Mrs. Tabor…

The Pumpkin Parade was a huge success!  I loved seeing all of your children’s creative pumpkins!  They did an awesome job.  Thank you so much for helping them.  There is no School on Tuesday, November 4^th due to Election Day.  Look for a bag coming home on Monday.  Your child needs to find an everyday object that is a 3-D shape.  Students will use it as a “Mystery Item,” where everyone gets to guess its shape on Wednesday.

Reminders

*Keep Flat Stanley going! We are really enjoying the letters that we have received so far.

*Send in a healthy snack and water bottle every day!

*Be sure to sign and return your students planner every day! Don’t forget to record their reading!

•Box Tops – please send them in!!!  For every Box Top we collect, 10 cents is added to our class budget! I’ll be glad to send you another bag, just let me know!

What are we learning?

 Reading Workshop

This week we will continue our third ELA Unit, A Season for Chapters. We will identify these elements in picture books. Then we will learn about the thinking strategy of Questioning.  Students will engage in a variety of activities to get their brains to think of deep/thick questions vs. thin questions.  Our questioning thinking stems include:  I wonder…, What if…, Why…, I don’t understand…, It confused me…, How could….  We will also discuss how good thinkers have questions before, during, and after reading. 

Writing Workshop

This week in writing we will learn how to write informative paragraphs.  We will start by writing about the seasons in Kentucky in relation to sports/activities, agriculture, holidays, and weather.  Then we will research China’s seasons and focus on the same four categories to compare/contrast China with Kentucky.  We will end the week by independently writing informative paragraphs about China.     

Word Study

This week’s words are: world, something, please, thank, Brown

Spelling patterns:  review of long vowel patterns

Long vowel group: Other vowel group: less common vowel patterns

Blends group: wh, qu, tw, and k

 Math

This week in math we will wrap up our study of shapes. We will create 3D shapes and identify faces, edges, bases, and vertices. Students will bring in a mystery 3D item from home to share.  We will review our geometry/graphing unit and then take an end of the unit assessment. 

 Social Studies

This week we will continue our Social Studies unit on ancient China.  We will learn about Emperor Qin, the Terracotta soldiers, and important Chinese inventions. 

Habit of the Week:

We will begin reviewing the 7 habits, beginning with “Put first things first”.

Related Arts Schedule

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
art	No school	art	art	art

October 27, 2014

A note from Mrs. Tabor…

Thank you to everyone for meeting with me during conferences to discuss your child’s progress!  Believe it or not, I enjoy the opportunity to discuss your child’s successes and goals.  It also helps me get to know your children as a member of your family.

Pumpkin Parade assignments and pumpkins are due on Friday, October 31st.  I hope you and your child have fun with this project.    If you are a Pinterest person, there are tons of great ideas and blogs with pictures of story book pumpkins out there.  Please have children bring in their pumpkin and writing assignment on Friday, October 31st so we can display them for all to see. 

Reminders

*Keep Flat Stanley going! We are really enjoying the letters that we have received so far.

*Send in a healthy snack and water bottle every day!

*Be sure to sign and return your students planner every day! Don’t forget to record their reading!

•Box Tops – please send them in!!!  For every Box Top we collect, 10 cents is added to our class budget! I’ll be glad to send you another bag, just let me know!

What are we learning?

 Reading Workshop

This week we will conclude our second ELA Unit, Building Bridges with Unlikely Friends. Students will apply what they have learned in this unit by completing a transfer task.  Then we will begin our next unit, A Season for Chapters.  We will start by learning about story elements (character, setting, plot, conflict, and theme).  We will identify these elements in picture books. Then we will learn how to identify important events from the beginning, middle, and end of a story.  We will discuss how the middle is usually longer because a lot happens in the middle of stories.   

Writing Workshop

This week in writing we will begin learning how to write multi-paragraphs.  We will use what we have learned about leads and transitions to get us started.  Then students will write about the story elements from the books we shared during reading.  Next we will summarize the books by writing about their beginning, middle, and ending.    Word Study

This week’s words are: morning, leave, turn, hard, along

Spelling patterns:  final /k/ sound (-ck, -ke, -k)

Long vowel group: Other vowel group: short I, long I with short o, long o

Blends group: pr, dr, tr

 Math

This week in math we will resume our study of shapes. We will review what we learned about polygons.  Then we will learn about different quadrangles/quadrilaterals (4 angles / 4 sides).  Next we will explore using tangrams to make larger shapes.  We will also learn to classify triangles by their sides (equilateral, isosceles, scalene).  We will end the week by exploring 3D shapes and learning to identify faces, edges, bases, and vertices.

 Social Studies

This week we will continue our Social Studies unit on ancient China.  Students will locate Asia and China on a map.  We will review China’s mountains, rivers, and nearby bodies of water. Then we will learn about the deserts located in China.  Next students will learn about two important people, Confucius and Lao Tzu.  

Habit of the Week:

We did not yet get to discuss the 7th Habit of Happy Kids, which is “Sharpen the Saw”, due to Red Ribbon week.  We will learn about the importance of this habit this week.  We will learn that balance is best!  We can take care of our bodies by eating right, exercising, and getting sleep.  We can learn in lots of ways and lots of places; not just at school.  We take time to help others.

Related Arts Schedule

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
technology	technology	technology	technology	technology