Happy Kansas Day!

What a busy week we have had in 2nd grade! Can you believe that Wednesday marked the 100th day of school? Students studied the value of the number "100" in several different contexts. Tomorrow, we will celebrate Kansas Day! During the morning, first and second grade will participate in 6 different Kansas related activities. Our class will take some time in the afternoon to research Kansas state symbols. I have posted a link to a website with some great information about these symbols to the right! Enjoy!

In math this week, we have continued our study of 2-digit subtraction. Students will spend next week reviewing and practicing the different strategies that we have covered. The following week, 2nd grade will begin studying fractions! Now would be a great time to discuss halves, fourths, and thirds with your child. Lots of foods naturally come in fractions, and groups of people and time on a clock are also great ways to think about fractions. Be creative!

Students continue to write various types of poetry in our class. Next week, we will wrap up poetry with a study of the life and works of Shel Silverstein. Students will also write a final book to teach you all about couplets, list poems, shape poems, acrostics, cinquains, and free verse poetry. I have really enjoyed working with so many poetic second graders! After we have wrapped up our study of poetry, students will spend several weeks developing their writing skills in personal narratives and descriptive writing. We will also begin to get deeper into the writing process and the Six Trait writing model.

We will end our study of the weather next week with a bang! 2nd graders will learn about tornadoes, lightning, and hurricanes. The weather assessment will be on Monday, February 8. After that, we will spend a couple of weeks studying influential African Americans. During this time, our class will also read The Drinking Gourd and discuss and write about the historical significance of the Underground Railroad.

I will not be sending home a book order for the month of February, as I'm sure many of you will be attending the Scholastic Book Fair at our school in 2 weeks! Look for another book order in March.

I hope that your 2nd grader enjoys the long weekend! Thanks, as always, for all that you do!