Week 20

I hope everyone had a great long weekend and had a chance for some good rest and rejuvenation!

Midterm Reports:
Midterm reports for 2nd trimester are coming home this week.  Take some time to check it out with your 2nd grader and come up with a plan for the rest of the trimester!

Christian Studies:
This week in Christian Studies we’re continuing to move through the New Testament.  We’ll be looking at the birth of Jesus, as well as the visit of the wise men.  We’ll discuss God always keeping His promises and how Jesus came for ALL people!

Math:
This week in math we’ll finish up our module on decomposing numbers.  This module has given us some mental math strategies to help us add and subtract more accurately and quickly.  We’ll then begin adding and subtracting with regrouping (the vocabulary you probably learned growing up is “borrowing” for subtraction and “carrying the one” for adding). 

Language Arts:
We started our phonics concept of Consonant-le endings last week, so we’ll continue practicing words with those endings.  We’ll learn that these endings have a schwa and the “e” is there because very syllable needs a vowel. 

Social Studies:
This week in Social Studies we’ll continue to learn about North America.  We’ll use a landform map to identify the location of physical features in North America.  We’ll also look at North America from space, and we’ll discuss seasons and climate in North America.

Science:
As we continue on with our unit about plants, we’ll start off by discussing the word “habitat” and analyzing the different components of a habitat that might impact a plant’s growth.  We’ll then use that information to ask questions about the grand spider orchid and why its population has been dwindling.

Week 19

This week has started off pretty differently, but we’re settling in now that I’m back!  Here’s what we’re doing this week:

Christian Studies:
This week in Christian Studies we’ll be learning about some of the prophesies of Jesus and God’s promise of a savior.  We’ll also learn about John the Baptist and how he prepared the way for Jesus.

Math:
This week in math we’re taking apart numbers (“decomposing”) in order to add and subtract more easily.  We’ll be using what we know about adding and subtracting, as well as tens and ones, to solidify these mental math strategies and help us add and subtract quickly and accurately.

Language Arts:
With me being gone the first two days of the week, we’ll be postponing our phonics concept until next week.  We will be looking at informational text and reading it closely to pick out details and clues that help us better understand the text.  We’ll also be writing about our reading.

Social Studies:
We started our unit on North America this week.  We began by looking at the countries in North America, as well as the types of water and landforms in North America.

Science:
We’ll start off our science unit about finding the best place for a plant to grow by reviewing science safety and decorating our workbook covers.  We’ll do a pre-assessment to find out what the students already know about plants and what they need to grow, then we’ll build off of that information as we go through the unit.

Week 18

We’re back for a full week of school, and we’ll be diving in!

Christian Studies:
This week in Christian Studies we’ll be learning about Jonah and the minor prophets, discussing their roles in history and the importance of obeying God in sharing our faith.  We’ll also learn about Nehemiah rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and discussing God’s faithfulness to His people.

Math:
This week I math we’ll be revisiting addition and subtraction and counting strategies, getting ready for two-digit addition and subtraction.  This week we’ll use a hundred chart and number line to count, and we’ll practice counting strategies to help us be more efficient and accurate in our adding and subtracting.

Language Arts:
This week we’ll be reviewing some of the last few phonics concepts we’ve learned:  diphthongs oi/oy and ou/ow, the “igh” vowel team, and the 3 Great Rules—doubling, drop the “e,” and change the “y” to an “i”.

In reading we’ll be looking at informational texts and discussing the characteristics associated with that genre, as well as looking at text features to help us better understand the text.  We’ll also use the text to answer key questions.

Social Studies:
We’ll review what we’ve learned about location in Social Studies.  Then we’ll talk about maps of the world and we’ll talk about how maps change over time.  We’ll use our magazine to take our test this week, as well.

Week 17

We have a fun-filled week this week!  Here’s what you can look forward to:

Memory Work Test on THURSDAY:
Due to our crazy week, we’ll be taking our memory work test on Thursday this week.  The students will have more time in class to study, and there’s no spelling this week!

Christmas Program!
The K-8 Christmas program is on Thursday, December 19 at 2 PM and 6 PM.  We hope you can join us for one of the performances!  The doors open at 5:45 for the evening performance.  For the 2 PM performance, students should wear standard of dress.  For the evening performance, they can wear standard of dress or they can dress fancier (no jeans, please).  Please follow the free dress guidelines on page 29 of the handbook (i.e., no tank top dresses, nothing too tight or short, etc.).

Christian Studies:
This week in Christian Studies we’ll learn about God’s faithfulness to His people, despite their disobedience.  We’ll first learn about the fall of Judah and Babylon’s occupation of Judah.  Then we’ll learn about Esther and how God used her to save His people.

Math:
We’ll be finishing off our module on telling time this week, taking our test on Thursday.  The kids are welcome to practice telling time and using time flash cards for their math fact practice this week. 

Week 16

This is our last “normal” week of the year, and we have a lot of learning to do!

Christian Studies:
This week we’ll be discussing Naaman’s healing and relating it to our baptism.  We’ll also learn about Hoshea and the fall of Israel as we walk through Israel’s history and the Old Testament.

Math:
This week in math we’ll finish up the module we’ve been working on, solving problems involving money.  We’ll then start our next module on telling and writing time.

Language Arts:
This week we’ll learn and practice the last of the “Three Great Rules.”  This week we’ll be discussing when we change the “y” to an “i” when adding suffixes (and when we don’t change it).

Social Studies:
We’ll continue our unit on location, using a map and identifying characteristics of different types of communities.  We’ll discuss rural, suburban, and urban neighborhoods.

Week 15

I hope everyone had a rejuvenating and relaxing holiday break!  We’re back to a full week of school this week and a normal routine!

Extra Credit:
If your child did any reading or math fact practice over the Thanksgiving break, it is due on Tuesday, December 3!  If you need a replacement copy of the extra credit paper, let me know and I’ll send it home with your child!

Christian Studies:
Last week we learned about Solomon, who asked for wisdom when God gave him the chance to ask for anything.  This week we learn about how he turned from God, and we will relate it to our own life, remembering that we need to keep focusing on God and reading His Word to stay connected to Him.  We’ll also learn about Elijah and his faithfulness, despite the danger he is put in.  We’ll discuss God’s faithfulness to him, and how God spoke to him in a gentle whisper.  Then we’ll discuss some of the messages that God has for us.

Math:
We’ll be reviewing counting coins and take our test on that module.  Then we’ll start the next module about working with dollar amounts.  We’ll relate the value of coins to one dollar, and then we’ll compute the value of dollar combinations.

Language Arts:
Our phonics concept this week is one of the Three Great Rules: Drop the e.  We’ll discuss words with a Magic E and how we drop the e when we add -ed or -ing.

We’ll also practice reading for comprehension and finding evidence in a text to answer questions.  We’ll also do some phonics practice, listening for sounds in different parts of a word.

Social Studies:
We’ll start our next Social Studies unit on location.  We’ll discuss a grid map and will practice using one to locate specific places.  We’ll also compare and contrast a photo vs. a map of the same location.

Week 14

We have a very short week this week with some fun things happening!

Early Dismissals and No School:

• Monday: early dismissal at 11:15 AM
• Tuesday: early dismissal at 11:15 AM
• Wednesday: no school
• Thursday: no school (Thanksgiving)
• Friday: no school

Extra Credit:
The 2^nd graders will have another opportunity for some extra credit over Thanksgiving break.  They’ll have the chance to do 20 minutes of reading and/or 5 minutes of flash cards for extra credit.  That’s going home today and will be due back Tuesday, December 3 for those who choose to participate.

Special Guest:
We have a special guest coming to 2^nd grade on Monday!  More information to come (it’s a surprise for the kids)!