Wonder What We've Been Up To?

The last couple of weeks have been very busy in our classroom! Here are just a few activities that have been keeping us actively learning. 

At the beginning of the month, we welcomed musician Randy Armstrong to our school. His residency began with a whole school concert, where he played a variety of instruments from around the world. We had the opportunity to spend time with him during our regular music class, learning more about these instruments and how to play the drums. Many thanks to the PFG for funding this Artist in Residence Program for our students. 

We are wrapping up our second unit in Math with a test on Friday. In this unit we’ve been reviewing strategies for remembering our math facts, working to explain our thinking in solving math problems, and understanding when the turn-around strategy works. We finished our second week of 2nd Grade Math Skill Building. During this time our whole grade level is on the move. Two days per week, from 2:30-3:00, the children meet in groups with others from all 2nd grades. Depending on the week, they may find themselves with Mrs. Peterson, Mrs. VanderMale, Mrs. Marshall, Mrs. Swasey,  Mrs. Babcock, or me. Grouping is flexible and based on teacher observations and pretest results. The goal of this time is for all students to advance in their understanding of particular math concepts.  

During reading, we’ve been reading Anansi folk tales which have been a hit! All seem to love the trickster. As we read fiction, we are focusing on identifying story elements and retelling stories. Several students recorded the readers’ theater story, “What a Skunk Needs to Do” after practicing their fluency. You can download it on our class page. 

Believe it or not, the first quarter ends this Friday, October 24th. Parent conferences are planned for Wednesday, November 5 and Wednesday, November 19. I have posted a sign up schedule on Volunteer Spot at: http://vols.pt/JeYirR. I appreciate that many of you need to leave work early or have to coordinate child care in order to attend the conference, and I will be sticking to scheduled appointment times.  I have planned 20 minutes for each conference, so if possible please arrive a few minutes early so that we can begin on time.  If you feel that 20 minutes will not be sufficient to discuss any questions or concerns you may have, please send a note and we can schedule a meeting for a different date.

Just a reminder, the children should be collecting fall leaves as part of their homework. On Thursday, October 30, they should bring in their clean, flattened leaves for a special art project, based on the book Look What I Did With a Leaf. You are welcome to join us from 2:00-3:00 on October 31st to create leaf animals with your child. I’m excited to see the beautiful designs.

Happy birthday wishes go out to Alexa, Mackenzie and Zach who all celebrate October birthdays! 

On Tuesday, October 28, our school is celebrating Book Character Day. Students and staff can dress up as one of their favorite book characters for the day. Hmmm, time to start planning now!

Finally, October 31 is Black and Orange Day at Swasey.

Be sure to bundle up this week, it’s going to get chilly!

Create your own digital slideshow