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St. Philip Neri Catholic School

Second Grade Update

Dear Second Grade Families,

Happy Friday! 

Thank you to our Art Docent, Mrs. Frentzel, and her assistance, Mrs. Jacobs, for a lovely family-centered art project this week. Students created their family’s hands and arranged them into masterpieces. Students were able to include things they loved about their families as well. 🙂 Thank you again, Mrs. Frentzel and Mrs. Jacobs!

Parent/Student/Teacher Conference Update:
A yellow sheet of paper with your parent/teacher/student conference day and time was sent home yesterday. If you did not indicate that you wanted an in-person conference, it was assumed to be Zoom. If you’d rather come in person, just send me an email. 🙂

For Zoom meetings, the Zoom meeting ID and password are included on the sheet. Please log in at the scheduled time, and I will admit you from the waiting room.

For in-person meetings, please make sure to submit your vaccination information to the office. Thank you!

Below is our weekly update:

Focus Areas for Our Learning Next Week:

  • Reading – Students will continue Book Club in small groups. They will practice speaking and listening skills and pay special attention to punctuation to support fluent reading (reading at an appropriate pace with accuracy and expression). 
  • Grammar/Spelling – In Superkids, students will review the types of sentences and end marks. Students will also learn about homonyms.
  • Writing – The class will learn about the content and structure of a personal narrative (a true story about something you’ve done or that’s happened in your life). Students will start planning their own narratives using an event from their life. They should be able to identify an event and share at least 3-5 details. 
    • NOTE: Since many children often have trouble coming up with ideas on the spot, it would be useful to your child if you helped them identify an event from their life they’d like to share about. You could prompt them with questions like: What is something fun/interesting/exciting/scary/disappointing that you remember happening in your life? Have them tell you about it with as many details as they can remember. Who was there? What happened? What did they see/hear/feel? If they are struggling, some popular topics are: going on a trip, playing on a sports team, making a new friend, attending a party, losing a tooth, learning to ride a bike.
  • Math –The class continues using subtraction to compare quantities. Students will write differences in the form of subtraction equations. Students will also solve story problems and use data to create bar graphs. We will continue practicing with doubles and halves and addition/subtraction facts through 20.
  • Religion – Students identify Jesus as the one who tells us the most about God and that we learn from his example in the Bible. We reflect on faith as a gift from God that helps us believe in Him.
  • Science – Continuing our unit about changes to the Earth’s surface over time, students investigate the effects of rocks tumbling in a river. Based on their observations, they construct an explanation for why there is sand at a beach (rescheduled from last week).
  • Social Studies – Students will have the opportunity to share about their families in class this week. Thank you for assisting your child with this homework project!  Ms. Andie from the Alameda Free Library will also visit our classroom for a read-aloud and discussion of “The Heart of Mi Familia”. 

Other Updates for this Week:

  • Homework: If anyone is still working on homework assignments, please send them in on Monday. Thank you! 🙂
  • Mask Fit – Please ensure your child’s mask fits properly. Many adult-sized masks are too big for these little ones and end up needing to be adjusted constantly.
  • Special Visits this Week! 
    • Ms. Andie from the Alameda Free Library will join us LIVE on Thursday morning for a special read-aloud! She is fully vaccinated and we are so happy she gets to resume her visits to SPN classes! with a read-aloud
    • Ms. Thomas, our principal, will join us Thursday afternoon to get to know our class. Her goal is to learn all names by the time she leaves our room. Go Ms. Thomas! 🙂
  • Alameda Food Bank Field Trip – We have many volunteers signed up, and it looks like our field trip is a go! Thank you! If you volunteered, I will be reaching out separately to confirm.
  • First Communion – Mrs. Diane Bustos, the head of the parish sacramental preparation program, will provide details about First Communion preparation in early October. I will send this information home with your child.
  • Dates to remember:
    • Wednesday, Sept. 29th: Noon Dismissal, Teacher PD
    • October 5th-8th: Noon Dismissals for Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences (yellow sheet with your day/time came home on Thursday)
    • Monday, Oct. 11th: No School, no Share & Care (Indigenous Peoples’ Day)
    • Thursday, Oct. 14th: Make-up Picture Day
    • Tuesday, Oct. 19th: Field Trip to Alameda Food Bank!
    • Friday, Oct. 29th: Noon Dismissal – Halloween Parade

We hope you enjoy a lovely weekend and look forward to seeing our students on Monday!

All the best,
Catherine

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What Our Families are Saying

"The supportive teachers at SPN played a big role in preparing me for high school and helping me understand what to expect. They encouraged me to ask questions and seek help when needed, which made me more confident in my learning. Thanks to them, I entered freshman year already familiar with many concepts and effective study habits that have helped me stay on top of my work. SPN also taught me valuable life skills that I still use today, helping me succeed academically, build strong friendships, and maintain my overall well-being."
— Tibby Horvath, SPN Class of 2022
"We are very satisfied with the SPN community, something that is important to our family. My children feel safe and comfortable with SPN. Our family feels connected with the SPN community from parents and families to the staff and faculty. My children and we as parents have made healthy and positive relationships with other families from school. We share time outside of school with other families which brings a level of connectedness I don't know if we would have elsewhere"
— SPN Parent
"My children are experiencing community in other ways than just friends and playdates. Faith Families is an example of community, interacting with students from all grade levels, and learning and creating for others outside of SPN. Field trips to Kids Against Hunger or the Alameda Food Bank where they work and see firsthand how their efforts help others less fortunate, for those who are in need of support. Community is not just our SPN ‘bubble,’ and that is what SPN demonstrates and provides– opportunity to explore a bigger community."
— SPN Parent since 2016

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