Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Tuesday

Whew, today was another nonstop day!

Students learned about lines of symmetry today in math as we folded paper and cut out shapes with congruent halves.

We learned proofreaders' marks and made lists of things that are challenging for us when we edit our writing.

We wrote one final book review as a class on a book called Smoky Nights by Eve Bunting, and students started on their own book reviews.

The 4th grade music program was great fun--I think the Western-theme might be favorite so far this year!

I taught that drugs don't solve problems, and we brainstormed a list of people you can talk to if you feel like you have a problem.

Enjoy the bit of sun that's poking out.

Monday, March 19, 2007

Monday

Wow, we had a lot to do today!

We read a book by Angela Johnson called wind flyer and wrote another book review as a class. The book touches on the existence of the Tuskegee Airmen from WWII, and the students made insightful inferences about it.

We also talked about rereading one's writing and thinking hard about "THE BIG IDEA." What is that that the author wants the reader to know?

Students played "Copy Tiles" and worked with mirrors to build symmetrical shapes.

We talked more about the impact of tobacco and alcohol on the body. We also talked about the difference between medications and drugs.

The rain seems to be back. I'll keep my fingers crossed for sun later in the week.

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Friday

Today was a busy day! We were visited by a leprechaun in the afternoon. No one was there to see him, but we found evidence of his visit.

We started our Health unit on Drug and Alcohol prevention today. Today we talked about the effects Alcohol and Nicotine can have on the human body.

We're getting ready to write book reviews, and authored one as a class on the book Bad Bears and a Bunny, written by Daniel Pinkwater. Ask your child about Irving and Muktuk. During writing time we talked about emulating authors. The students are borrowing ideas and styles from other authors.

We built symmetrical pictures out of pattern blocks and symmetrical buildings from geoblocks. When you're out and about ask if your student can locate something symmetrical.

Have a wonderful weekend. May the sun keep shining.

Friday, March 16, 2007

Welcome!

Hello Parents and Important People,

Welcome to the blog for our 2nd grade class! I'll try to keep it updated every day or two with information from our class. Sometimes I will write the entries, other times the students will. This will be the place to look if you want to find out what your child did at school. (Maybe you can use the info to help out with those dinner table conversations that often go "How was school today?" "Fine." "What did you do?" "Nothing.")

Please let me know if you find this useful. I'm hoping we can increase communication in a way that is easy for parents to access.

Happy Learning,
Ms. Smith