Dear Parents, The school year is off to a great start. Here are some of the skills and concepts that we will be working on in the month of September.
Reading-We will be reading a variety of both fiction and nonfiction literature. Students will be working on identifying the characters and setting in fictional literature. We will also be working on identifying the main idea of the story and the author's purpose for writing it. Together we will be doing lots of comparing and contrasting of different stories. The students will be practicing their reading fluency by reading a variety of short stories and poems. Thank you for reading with your child our weekly reading story and sending back the parent signature slip.
Accelerated Reader-All students have their reading levels and goals for the first quarter. (This was a pink sheet that was sent home with all students.) If the pink sheet did not make it home, just let me know. I will be happy to fill out another one so that you are aware of your child's AR level and reading goal. Students are encouraged to check out books for independent reading from our classroom library that are within their reading level. We usually have around 30 minutes a day where students can take AR tests on the computer. Accelerated Reader does not count as a grade in second grade, but it is very important for reading growth and development. Please encourage your child to read at home each night for at least 15 minutes.
Math- In Math, we will continue to practice our addition and subtraction facts. Practicing with your child basic addition and subtraction facts will be a great help. We will continue to take several practice tests in class, and then your child will take a one and a half minute timed test that will count as a grade. The students did a terrific job on their first math test over place value. We have been working on adding and subtracting numbers with and without regrouping. I must say that I have some great problem solvers in my classroom.
Spelling- We will continue to have pretests on Thursdays and final tests on Fridays. The pretest and the final test will include a dictation sentence. I always have extra spelling lists on hand, so if you need another list just let me know.
Grammar- Students will continue to write in their personal journals. We already have some great journal entries. We will be learning about subjects, predicates, statements, and questions. Students will be learning how to write complete sentences with capital letters and correct punctuation.
Social Studies/Science- I rotate these 2 subjects in the afternoon. In Social Studies, we will continue to learn more about communities. We will be discussing how communities are different from one another. Your child will learn the difference between an urban, rural, and suburban community, This month in Science we will be studying different features of Earth. We will learn about Earth's land and water. Students will also learn some of Earth's landforms and how they change over time.
I am looking forward to a great month of learning with your child. Please don't ever hesitate to email me or call me if you have any questions or concerns.