Sorry for the late post this week. I blame the Super Bowl!
Last week was another busy one. We did quite a bit of art, and it turned out so well!
In writing we started talking about Personification. The students discussed different things that people do that we could use to describe inanimate objects. For example, the leaves danced in the wind. Leaves can not actually dance, but it is a beautiful way to describe how they move on a windy day. They all practiced writing different personification sentences, and then made a personification poem in the shape of the object they are writing about.
We have been focusing on subtraction in math. We used our knowledge of Fact Families to try and find the missing number from a number sentence. For example, if the question was _-8=4 we would change it around to 4+8=_ to help us solve for the missing number. Subtraction can be very hard for grade 2's, but our class is working hard to understand!
We combined science and art last week as we finished talking about Hot & Cold and created 4 different trees for the four seasons. For each tree we used a different medium or style to create a different effect.
In health we have been reading books by Todd Par, and we created our own self portraits in the style of the art in his books. We also did some writing to go with our art about how we are different, and what our favorite thing about ourselves is. We will be displaying the art and writing in the hall to share with our peers.
***Don't Forget***
Insulation projects are due on Thursday. If you would like to send them in early we will label and store them until Thursday. Please let your teacher know if you have any questions.
Monday, February 4, 2019
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Week 19
It was a strange week for weather, but we all survived! Thank you to all the families who are remembering to dress your child for the snow! Depending on how icy it is tomorrow we may be having an indoor morning body break.
For writing this week we have been practicing analyzing different stories and discussing the lessons that are being taught through the story. We read 2 stories, Omar on Ice and Skating with Bears. The students then took their observations from both stories and compared the ideas from both of them. We will practice with more stories later in the year, but we are looking forward to learning some new writing skills as we start our exploration into poetry next week!
In math we practiced making fact families this week. We practiced on whiteboards, on snowmen sheets, and in our math books. We will be using this concept as we progress into harder math skills, such as double digit addition and subtraction. Next week we will be focusing on finding the missing number in number sentences that are addition or subtraction.
We had some great conversations this week about germs and how they can effect the body. We watched a magic school bus where Ms. Frizzle took the students on an adventure into Ralphie's immune system to learn about how our bodies fight off germs. We finished off the week with an art project around how the weather changes in the 4 seasons. We will continue that project this week, exploring the seasons using different mediums and tools to create our art.
Raz Kids is returning! Accounts will be set up this week and we will be sending home passwords so that you can now read books on Raz Kids as well at home.
For writing this week we have been practicing analyzing different stories and discussing the lessons that are being taught through the story. We read 2 stories, Omar on Ice and Skating with Bears. The students then took their observations from both stories and compared the ideas from both of them. We will practice with more stories later in the year, but we are looking forward to learning some new writing skills as we start our exploration into poetry next week!
In math we practiced making fact families this week. We practiced on whiteboards, on snowmen sheets, and in our math books. We will be using this concept as we progress into harder math skills, such as double digit addition and subtraction. Next week we will be focusing on finding the missing number in number sentences that are addition or subtraction.
We had some great conversations this week about germs and how they can effect the body. We watched a magic school bus where Ms. Frizzle took the students on an adventure into Ralphie's immune system to learn about how our bodies fight off germs. We finished off the week with an art project around how the weather changes in the 4 seasons. We will continue that project this week, exploring the seasons using different mediums and tools to create our art.
Raz Kids is returning! Accounts will be set up this week and we will be sending home passwords so that you can now read books on Raz Kids as well at home.
Sunday, January 20, 2019
Week 18
Week 2 back from holidays was a bit colder than we have experienced so far this year. Make sure that your children are dressed appropriately, as we take them outside every day.
In writing both classes have been experimenting with a picture prompt to inspire a story. The picture was a sleeping polar bear, with a penguin holding cymbals standing over him. They loved the picture, and were able to create good stories by remembering the story writing lessons we had before winter break. They also have been working on responding to a story that has been read to them, trying to make personal connections to what happens with the characters.
In math the students have been practicing problem solving. They are building the skills to figure out if a problem is adding or subtracting, and are using pictures, number sentences, and word sentences to show their thinking and how they found their answer. This week we will be learning about fact families. Students will learn how to move numbers around in an equation so that they can use addition or subtraction to find their answers.
In science we have continued to learn about hot and cold. The students have been learning about how animals insulate themselves in the winter, and how buildings stay warm when it is cold outside. We will be doing another insulation experiment this week with ice cubes.
Gymnastics has been going great! Just a reminder that if you child is dealing with warts on their feet, they do not have to take off their shoes. It is recommended as students are better able to climb on the equipment, but for health reasons they should keep their shoes on if they need to. They will still be able to participate.
Remember that Library is first thing Monday morning, so don't forget to pack your library books!
In writing both classes have been experimenting with a picture prompt to inspire a story. The picture was a sleeping polar bear, with a penguin holding cymbals standing over him. They loved the picture, and were able to create good stories by remembering the story writing lessons we had before winter break. They also have been working on responding to a story that has been read to them, trying to make personal connections to what happens with the characters.
In math the students have been practicing problem solving. They are building the skills to figure out if a problem is adding or subtracting, and are using pictures, number sentences, and word sentences to show their thinking and how they found their answer. This week we will be learning about fact families. Students will learn how to move numbers around in an equation so that they can use addition or subtraction to find their answers.
In science we have continued to learn about hot and cold. The students have been learning about how animals insulate themselves in the winter, and how buildings stay warm when it is cold outside. We will be doing another insulation experiment this week with ice cubes.
Gymnastics has been going great! Just a reminder that if you child is dealing with warts on their feet, they do not have to take off their shoes. It is recommended as students are better able to climb on the equipment, but for health reasons they should keep their shoes on if they need to. They will still be able to participate.
Remember that Library is first thing Monday morning, so don't forget to pack your library books!
Sunday, January 13, 2019
Week 17
Happy New Year!
It has been a great start back in 2019, with many exciting things planned for the year. The first, and most exciting, is welcoming student teachers Rebecca Deobald and Jessie McCauley to our classrooms until April 12th as they build their teaching practice under our supervision. They have already shown so much potential, and the students are quickly warming up to them, and it is only the first week!
First of all, Winter Sports Day on Friday was cancelled due to ice on the compound and in the field. It will be rescheduled for March. We will let you know more information closer to the day.
We hope that you all enjoyed the winter stories that the students brought home before the break. They worked so hard on them, and were so proud of what they created! Definitely a keepsake that you will have for years.
This week we talked about New Years Resolutions, and came up with at least 3 of our own. Each student had to come up with a resolution for themselves, something to help others, and one to help the world. As the week went on the children referred back to their resolutions when they were building new skills or thinking of their evening plans.
In math we continued our talk around balancing equations. The students practiced using the greater than, less than, equal to, and not equal to. We reminded ourselves that a number sentence can be reversed, or that both sides of the equation can have an addition or subtraction question.
We began looking at hot and cold for our science inquiry, and even did an experiment led by Ms. Deobald. We were looking at the effectiveness of 3 different insulators on a boiling cup of water. We used tinfoil, newspaper, and a wool sock. Ask your child which insulator held in the heat the best.
We learned a bit about pointillism this week, and how we can use dots to create art. We used our prior knowledge about how to draw a snowflake, and then used white paint and a q-tip to make dots on our drawings. The finished snowflakes look amazing!
This week we will be beginning to look at poetry in writing, creating our own problems for math, and continuing to look at hot and cold, with more focus on cold!
It has been a great start back in 2019, with many exciting things planned for the year. The first, and most exciting, is welcoming student teachers Rebecca Deobald and Jessie McCauley to our classrooms until April 12th as they build their teaching practice under our supervision. They have already shown so much potential, and the students are quickly warming up to them, and it is only the first week!
First of all, Winter Sports Day on Friday was cancelled due to ice on the compound and in the field. It will be rescheduled for March. We will let you know more information closer to the day.
We hope that you all enjoyed the winter stories that the students brought home before the break. They worked so hard on them, and were so proud of what they created! Definitely a keepsake that you will have for years.
This week we talked about New Years Resolutions, and came up with at least 3 of our own. Each student had to come up with a resolution for themselves, something to help others, and one to help the world. As the week went on the children referred back to their resolutions when they were building new skills or thinking of their evening plans.
In math we continued our talk around balancing equations. The students practiced using the greater than, less than, equal to, and not equal to. We reminded ourselves that a number sentence can be reversed, or that both sides of the equation can have an addition or subtraction question.
We began looking at hot and cold for our science inquiry, and even did an experiment led by Ms. Deobald. We were looking at the effectiveness of 3 different insulators on a boiling cup of water. We used tinfoil, newspaper, and a wool sock. Ask your child which insulator held in the heat the best.
We learned a bit about pointillism this week, and how we can use dots to create art. We used our prior knowledge about how to draw a snowflake, and then used white paint and a q-tip to make dots on our drawings. The finished snowflakes look amazing!
This week we will be beginning to look at poetry in writing, creating our own problems for math, and continuing to look at hot and cold, with more focus on cold!
Sunday, December 9, 2018
Week 14
December is here, and we are all feeling it! With the snow on the ground, and the children talking of elves and Christmas decorations, singing songs and getting ready for the Christmas concert, this last week seemed to fly by!
We are working hard on our winter stories! This week students were expected to finish drawing their story board, and are now onto writing their stories. They are practicing taking the one idea, and expanding it by using detail of what the character is doing, seeing, and even thinking or feeling. The students are starting to get it, and the stories are coming alive!!!
In math we have continued to talk about coins, and how we can use them to create different amounts. Students realized that when you use a few of the same coin, you end up skip counting! Students will continue to practice this skill at the beginning of the week, and we will be moving on to balancing equations. It is always interesting when students find out that the number sentence can be on the right side of the equal sign, or both sides of an equation can be a number sentence.
We finished reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory this week, and are looking forward to watching the new movie version on Tuesday afternoon! If you are able to send in a small snack for the class, then we can make a small party out of it! Any parents that would like to volunteer in the morning to make microwave popcorn and put it in individual paper bags for both classes, please contact Ms. Secord at lmsecord@cbe.ab.ca.
We have continued our talk around communities, and have expanded our inquiry to Alberta. We looked at the different symbols of Alberta, and even practiced drawing a few of them. We will expand our inquiry even further to different communities of Canada after winter break.
We have been practicing hard for the Christmas concert, and will have a few run throughs this week before our big productions on Thursday afternoon at 1:00pm and evening at 6:30pm. We are so excited to perform, and are looking forward to showing you what we have created! Remember, if you need more tickets for the evening performance please contact the office.
We are working hard on our winter stories! This week students were expected to finish drawing their story board, and are now onto writing their stories. They are practicing taking the one idea, and expanding it by using detail of what the character is doing, seeing, and even thinking or feeling. The students are starting to get it, and the stories are coming alive!!!
In math we have continued to talk about coins, and how we can use them to create different amounts. Students realized that when you use a few of the same coin, you end up skip counting! Students will continue to practice this skill at the beginning of the week, and we will be moving on to balancing equations. It is always interesting when students find out that the number sentence can be on the right side of the equal sign, or both sides of an equation can be a number sentence.
We finished reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory this week, and are looking forward to watching the new movie version on Tuesday afternoon! If you are able to send in a small snack for the class, then we can make a small party out of it! Any parents that would like to volunteer in the morning to make microwave popcorn and put it in individual paper bags for both classes, please contact Ms. Secord at lmsecord@cbe.ab.ca.
We have continued our talk around communities, and have expanded our inquiry to Alberta. We looked at the different symbols of Alberta, and even practiced drawing a few of them. We will expand our inquiry even further to different communities of Canada after winter break.
We have been practicing hard for the Christmas concert, and will have a few run throughs this week before our big productions on Thursday afternoon at 1:00pm and evening at 6:30pm. We are so excited to perform, and are looking forward to showing you what we have created! Remember, if you need more tickets for the evening performance please contact the office.
Friday, November 30, 2018
week 13
Wow, how is it already December? As of today, we have been in school for 60 days already! Where has the time gone?
It has been another busy week! The students worked very hard on their dance routine, and it was great to see all the parents who were able to make it out today for the performance! Our students definitely have some skills!!!
We are almost done reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and are thinking that it would be a great idea to watch it on movie day on December 20th! We can't wait!
In math we have been looking at even and odd numbers and are moving into looking at money and the value of Canadian coins. Did you know that you can tell if a number is even or odd just by looking at the ones place? Then all you have to do is find out if that number in the ones place is even (every one has a buddy) or odd (one of the ones is lonely). Ask your child to show you what they know.
In writing we have begun working on a holiday story! We have used a visual organizer to plan our story, and we are now using a story board to draw out the events in order. Over the next few weeks we will be using our pictures and expanding writing skills to create awesome stories that we will share with you!
We have been developing our sense of our community from small to large. We started with self, then family, then Cranston, and now Calgary. Next week we will be looking at Alberta and Canada, and how those communities effect how we live.
Next week:
We will be looking at how coins are counted, and how many cents makes a dollar. Students will be experimenting with different ways to put coins together to create the same amount.
Students will be working on expanding their ideas for their story writing, and looking at how they can use their words to help the reader "see" the story in their heads.
It has been another busy week! The students worked very hard on their dance routine, and it was great to see all the parents who were able to make it out today for the performance! Our students definitely have some skills!!!
We are almost done reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and are thinking that it would be a great idea to watch it on movie day on December 20th! We can't wait!
In math we have been looking at even and odd numbers and are moving into looking at money and the value of Canadian coins. Did you know that you can tell if a number is even or odd just by looking at the ones place? Then all you have to do is find out if that number in the ones place is even (every one has a buddy) or odd (one of the ones is lonely). Ask your child to show you what they know.
In writing we have begun working on a holiday story! We have used a visual organizer to plan our story, and we are now using a story board to draw out the events in order. Over the next few weeks we will be using our pictures and expanding writing skills to create awesome stories that we will share with you!
We have been developing our sense of our community from small to large. We started with self, then family, then Cranston, and now Calgary. Next week we will be looking at Alberta and Canada, and how those communities effect how we live.
Next week:
We will be looking at how coins are counted, and how many cents makes a dollar. Students will be experimenting with different ways to put coins together to create the same amount.
Students will be working on expanding their ideas for their story writing, and looking at how they can use their words to help the reader "see" the story in their heads.
Sunday, November 25, 2018
week 12
Hello families! Sorry we have not sent out a blog in a few weeks. Here is an update of what we have been working on.
In writing, the students did an amazing week of Remembrance Day writing about the importance of remembering and what peace means to them. The students were very insightful and have such big hearts. Then we read a few different books from the Black Lagoon series, and the students used a writing organizer to plan their own Black Lagoon books. They took their ideas and put them into book form, and did their own illustrations! They look so good, and the students are so proud of them!
Both classes have been practicing editing for capitals and punctuation. This is a very important skill to have. Students need to be able to go back and review their writing and edit their own work.
In math the students have been focusing on getting a deeper understanding of place value. They learned about what a digit is, and that a one digit number is in the ones, a two digit number is in the tens, and a three digit number is in the hundreds. Students learned how to use base ten blocks and a place value chart to record numbers. They learned a game called Target Number, where they used a place value chart, base ten blocks, and dice to try and reach a number before their partner did. This was a great practice grouping ones into tens and being able to move that ten into the tens column, which will help their understanding of larger addition that is coming up.
We have been focusing on different types of communities, and how communities can be different sizes. From small to large, our communities are self, family, community, city, province, country, and world! We have now completed our self and family, and are moving into our community of Cranston and the different things it contains to help us work together and live happy and healthy lives.
We have done some amazing art! Both classes did a Remembrance Day display, and Ms. Secord's class did a Ted Harrison art project with Mrs. Brace, our substitute. Your children are so talented!
This week:
- we will continue to work on our editing skills, and do another story writing activity. The students will now look at using triple scoop words in their writing to help the reader be able to visualize their stories better.
- we will be working on our problem solving skills on open ended problems (a problem that has more than one answer). The website https://mathbeforebed.com has some great ideas for you to try at home.
- we will be looking at Cranston and thinking about how our community contributes to our way of life.
In writing, the students did an amazing week of Remembrance Day writing about the importance of remembering and what peace means to them. The students were very insightful and have such big hearts. Then we read a few different books from the Black Lagoon series, and the students used a writing organizer to plan their own Black Lagoon books. They took their ideas and put them into book form, and did their own illustrations! They look so good, and the students are so proud of them!
Both classes have been practicing editing for capitals and punctuation. This is a very important skill to have. Students need to be able to go back and review their writing and edit their own work.
In math the students have been focusing on getting a deeper understanding of place value. They learned about what a digit is, and that a one digit number is in the ones, a two digit number is in the tens, and a three digit number is in the hundreds. Students learned how to use base ten blocks and a place value chart to record numbers. They learned a game called Target Number, where they used a place value chart, base ten blocks, and dice to try and reach a number before their partner did. This was a great practice grouping ones into tens and being able to move that ten into the tens column, which will help their understanding of larger addition that is coming up.
We have been focusing on different types of communities, and how communities can be different sizes. From small to large, our communities are self, family, community, city, province, country, and world! We have now completed our self and family, and are moving into our community of Cranston and the different things it contains to help us work together and live happy and healthy lives.
We have done some amazing art! Both classes did a Remembrance Day display, and Ms. Secord's class did a Ted Harrison art project with Mrs. Brace, our substitute. Your children are so talented!
This week:
- we will continue to work on our editing skills, and do another story writing activity. The students will now look at using triple scoop words in their writing to help the reader be able to visualize their stories better.
- we will be working on our problem solving skills on open ended problems (a problem that has more than one answer). The website https://mathbeforebed.com has some great ideas for you to try at home.
- we will be looking at Cranston and thinking about how our community contributes to our way of life.
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