Dear Second Grade Families,
Happy Friday!
This week, students did a FANTASTIC job sharing about their families! They made connections about how important families are, how similar and different they can be, and how amazing it is that we all ended up in this second grade classroom together because of the decisions of not only our parents, but our ancestors! I was impressed by what students learned, what they found important, and how they listened to each other! Thank you for your support!
For next week’s conferences, please be prompt since they are only 15 minutes long. I work hard to stay on schedule and honor all families’ time. I look forward to meeting with you and your child!
Below is our weekly update:
Focus Areas for Our Learning Next Week:
- Reading – Students will finish Book Club! They will practice summarizing stories by sharing events in the beginning, middle, and end. Students will also identify how characters have changed throughout the story. Fluent reading (reading at an appropriate pace with accuracy and expression) continues to be an area of focus for all students.
- Grammar/Spelling – In Superkids, students decode and encode words with spelling patterns -le and -ng as well as a selection of sight words. The class will also review nouns and verbs as parts of a sentence.
- Writing – Students draft their personal narratives using their planning pages. This will be completed for homework since we have noon dismissals most days. An example narrative will also come home to help guide them as they write. Students should make an attempt to edit their drafts for complete sentences and punctuation. Final revising and editing will be done in class the following week.
- Math –The class continues to build knowledge of addition and subtraction facts through 20 using tools and strategies like the number rack, number line, and addition table.
- Religion – Students learn about the Holy Trinity – One God in Three Divine Persons.
- Science – Continuing our unit about changes to the Earth’s surface over time, students extend their knowledge of erosion with a read-aloud and discussion about the Grand Canyon. This will prepare us to create a model of canyon creation the following week!
- Social Studies – Students will expand their thinking from their own families to the communities where they live. Key vocabulary includes neighborhood, community, urban, suburban, and rural.
Other Updates for this Week:
- Field Trip Permission Form! – On Monday, please look for a purple permission form in your child’s green folder. Please complete and submit by Friday, October 8th.
- Progress Report – On Monday, your child’s progress report will come home in an envelope in their green folder. Please have this available for our conference.
- First Reconciliation/First Communion – Mrs. Diane Bustos, the head of the parish sacramental preparation program, has provided information about First Communion. I will forward her email with attachments. Please review if you are planning to have your child prepare for First Reconciliation/First Communion.
- Dates to remember:
- October 4th: Blessing of the Animals prayer service – students may bring a stuffy or picture of their pet(s); no live animals on the yard please
- 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
