Second Grade Update

Dear Second Grade Families,

Happy Friday! 

This week, Mayor Ezzy Ashcraft visited our classroom. Prior to her visit, your children developed a list of amazing questions for the Mayor. She was very impressed with their insightfulness and curiosity! Here is the list of questions in case you are interested! 🙂

Thank you to everyone who helped to make Mrs. Serles birthday special! Your children’s cards were precious and brought a big smile to her face! Pic attached 🙂 Thank you to our room parent, Mrs. Trujillo for organizing this thoughtful gift!

Next week, our class gets to participate in a virtual author visit via Alameda Library! The author is Nidhi Chanani who has written many children’s books, most recently “What Will My Story Be?”, a book that encourages kids to be their most creative selves, to imagine all the places that their story will take them, and to cherish the wisdom of the generations that came before them. If you are interested, her books may be ordered through this link, and all books ordered through this link will be signed by the author. (This is organized by the Alameda Library.)

Heads Up: This coming week, students will take an assessment in Lexia to confirm their level. It is very likely the assessment will place many students at a lower level than they are currently. This is because we are looking for skill mastery, and that takes review and practice. I have discussed this with students. Patience, practice, and hard work are skills as well. In today’s world, it is common to want to get to the finish line as quickly as possible, often sacrificing excellence and care. I will encourage students to embrace this opportunity and ask for your reinforcement of these ideas at home as well. Thank you!  🙂

Below is our second grade update.

Focus Areas for Our Learning Next Week:

• Reading – We will continue book clubs. Students will practice understanding characters, recalling key details, and citing evidence in the text. Fluent reading (reading at an appropriate pace with accuracy and expression) is always a focus for all students.
• Grammar/Spelling – In Superkids, students will continue their practice adding -ed and -ing endings. We will also review irregular verbs.
• Writing – The class will complete our How-To writing pieces. Students will create their final copy with their best handwriting and draw illustrations to match their steps. 
• Math – Students will complete their 3-digit numbers assessment, and then we will shift our focus to using money – being mindful of place value and using currency symbols.
• Religion – We continue learning about the parts of the Mass, specifically how the Introductory Rites gather us as a community and prepare us to worship God.
• Science – The class will learn about plant adaptations – how plant structures have evolved over time to help them thrive in specific environments. Students will conclude their investigation about the needs of plants and record their observations.
• Social Studies – The class will discuss how laws get made, drawing on our knowledge of the three branches of government. We will continue to celebrate women’s history month with class conversations and read-alouds about individuals who have contributed positively to our communities. Your children share such insightful comments!

Other Updates for this Week:

• COVID Safety– As you read in the newsletter, masks are now optional indoors. Please have your student do what feels best for your family. Please continue to be vigilant with the daily health screening. We appreciate your continued diligence – it keeps us all safe!
• Dates to remember:
  • Tuesday, Mar. 15th – Free Dress March Birthdays
  • Thursday, Mar. 17th – St. Patrick’s Day, green and white free dress
  • Friday, Mar. 18th – Report Card Day
  • Tuesday, Apr. 12th – Rice Bowls due back

We look forward to seeing our students on Monday!

All the best,

Catherine