January 25th, 2018

Dear Parents,

Below is an overview of our learning last week and this week.

Math
In math we have been working hard to tell the time. Last week students were given 2 days to create their own schedule and manage their time wisely. It gave them the opportunity to carry out their day in the order that they liked, as well as giving them greater independence on when classes should start and finish. This week we have been estimating time, having quizzes (The students love getting into groups and working together to solve time based problems), and creating a given time. The skills we need to master in Grade 2 within this topic is telling time to the closest minute. Most students are very good at doing this, therefore, we have been extending our skills by learning different ways to say the time - quarter past, half past, and quarter to. We have also been adding a certain amount of time to a given time, for example - If it is 10.05am right now, what will the time be in 25 minutes from now?

Please note that you can extend your child's IXL skill level by pressing onto Grade 3, 4, 5 etc. I always try to extend students in class who are reaching the math standards for our grade level.

**If our calculations are right we will be celebrating 100 days of school on Monday 5th of Feb (counting the snow days). Students can be creative and bring in 100 of something on that day.

Unit
Last week, the students worked very independently to create their science projects. I was very impressed with the range of experiments this year. The students followed the scientific procedure with great accuracy, and were able to present their work in a variety of ways. I am really proud of how far our class has come this year. The thinking skills that P2 now shows is such a huge progression compared to the beginning of the year. We started our brand new unit this week, and again, the students thinking, questioning, and discussions are showing more depth. It is very exciting! Our new unit is all about role models. We have been talking about how every single student in P2 can change the world if they put their mind to it whether it be big or small. My aim is for our class to take action in some way or another and the students are already suggesting some great ideas.

Central idea; People are admired for different reasons and can encourage us to take action.

Literacy
We have been using pictures to prompt story ideas. The students loved creating a spooky story by using a spooky picture to help inspire them. There were many great ideas. As we have now started the new semester, I will be doing some reading tests and words-their-way testing (spelling) to check on our progress. I would just like to remind you that your child should be doing some reading each night as it can really make a difference to their learning. Reading for 20 minutes a day can expose a child to 1,800,000 words a year. If a student reads for 5 minutes a day it can expose them to 282,000 words a year, and reading just 1 minute a day exposes them to just 8,000 words a year. If you don't have access to books, your child can use the school library, classroom library, or Raz-Kids. 


Enjoy your long weekend and I will see you on Monday.

January 16th, 2018

Dear Parents,

Below is an overview of our learning last week.

Unit:
Students began the week with a very simple experiment using baking soda, vinegar and a balloon. Lots of students hypothesised that the balloon would explode. Luckily, only one did. Students worked hard on their scientific procedure, making sure to write down their questions, materials, procedure etc. Throughout the rest of the week, the students have been working on a personal inquiry in groups of 1, 2, or 3. They thought of an experiment they would like to conduct/test, and began working on their scientific procedure.

Our current unit is coming to an end, and we will be starting a new unit next week. I would like to invite you into our classroom on Friday at 1:00pm - 1:40 pm. Students will be having a mini science fair where they will share their science experiment with you.

Math:
Students were given a math test last week to demonstrate their knowledge of graphs. We are now learning about telling the time on an analog and digital clock. This is a great topic for you to integrate within your household. If your child asks you what the time is, encourage them to try figure it out for themselves. You could also encourage them to wear a watch to school if they have one.

Literacy:

We have gotten back into our daily five routine. Many students wanted to continue studying the spelling words they had before Christmas break, therefore, will be tested on Friday. Remember, spellingcity is a great resource that makes spelling fun.

November 27th, 2017

Dear Parents,

Tomorrow is our rescheduled field trip. Students will be able to demonstrate their skills from unit 2 for you. Below is an overview of our learning last week.

Unit
Last week we completed unit 2. Students finished their maps of a country of their choice. It was great to see that some students were able to follow a marking rubric with independence.

On Wednesday we started our new unit, unit 3. Usually I do not like telling students the topic of our unit. I like to see them think, wonder, and inquire. It is interesting to hear the conversations that spark, and the ideas they think about. After looking at 3 balloons - one with air (gas), one with water (liquid), and one with ice (solid), as well as turning cream into butter, students began thinking about our possible unit.

Possible ideas:
- water
- changing liquids to something hard
- turning into something
- balloons

Math
In math we created graphing activities for other students in the class to complete. Students had to include one graph, ask 5 questions, and be able to prepare an answer sheet for their peers to check. It was a great activity as the students were testing their friends about their graphing knowledge.


Literacy
We worked on expanding our vocabulary by using the pictures in stories to guide our understanding. Some students use their new vocabulary whilst speaking, which is a great strategy to remember new words. Students are doing really well in their daily 5 activities, making sure to fullfill their learning goals.

November 21st, 2017

Dear Parents,

Thank you for your patience with our field trip. I need to discuss possible dates for our rescheduled trip, and will let you know as soon as Dr. Gilbert approves it. Below is an overview of our short week.

Unit
Students were busy completing a salt dough map of a country that they chose to research. They worked hard finding the landforms of their country, and made sure to include a title, key, compass rose, and lots of symbols. We are coming to the end of our unit, and will be beginning our brand new unit this week. You may come and look at your child's map once our field trip has been scheduled. I am sure your child will be excited to show you.

****None of these maps are finished****

Math
In math we learnt about pictographs. Students created symbols that represented numbers, and we focused specifically on symbols that represented more than one, for example, a triangle = 2 people. This was a difficult concept for some students, but with practice I am confident that they will understand this concept in no time. Towards the end of the week we reviewed tally charts, bar graphs, and pictographs. It is amazing to see the progress that the students are showing compared to P1. Students are creating graphs all by themselves, thinking about the titles, numbers, labels, and how to display the numbers. We are doing great at analysing the data, and most students are able to work independently.

Literacy
During our Daily Five time we focused on sight words. As a class we practiced saying and identifying a wide range of sight words. Sight words are the most common words in the English language, and are often difficult to sound out, instead students need to know the words by sight. I have put the Grade 2 Dolch list on our spellingcity app if you feel as if your child needs to practice.

November 15th, 2017

Dear Parents,

I hope that you all had a fantastic long weekend. Below is an outline of our learning from last week.

Unit
Students continued with their map skills last week by creating their own treasure directions outside on the field/playground, in small groups of 2-3. They worked together to write directions that were precise and accurate so that other students in the classroom could find their treasure. On Friday we went to search for each other's treasure, and it was a great learning experience for us. Student's learnt that some of their directions are difficult for others to follow, and that more details need to be given so that they are easier to follow/understand. This week we will continue working on our procedural writing, ensuring that our steps make sense.

Our field trip to the park will be on Thursday. Thank you to all of the parents who have volunteered to help us.


Math
In math we made a range of tally charts and bar graphs. Students thought of a question to ask their friends in KG and P3, which they then sorted onto a tally chart. Once our tally charts were complete we focused on creating a bar graph. The students have really great graphing habits, and are very good at adding the different titles and labels needed. To end our week, we made 3D bar graphs. This week we will be focusing on interpreting the numbers on our graphs, as well as creating pictographs.

Literacy
As you know, we have been working on procedural writing. Students have been busy revising and editing their treasure directions for others to follow. Writing and unit are highly integrated, making it easy to learn more in a short amount of time. This is a big focus during our literacy time right now.

November 6th, 2017

Dear Parents,

I hope that you are all feeling a little bit more knowledgable about your child's progress at school after the parent meetings. If you have any problems or want to know how your child is doing, please feel free to contact me on classdojo or email.

Math
To begin our week, students reviewed place value skills that they needed extra practice with. We had a place value test on Wednesday, which covered all of the skills we have learnt in math this year. I was looking at the end of year Grade 1 test, and couldn't believe how well the children have done in comparison. The Grade 2 numbers are much higher, and the skills are a lot more demanding. We should be so proud! Place value is a skill that comes up daily in math. If your child needs extra help with a certain skill, we will continue developing their knowledge, and no doubt it will be a recurring theme throughout the units. To end the week we started our new math topic of data management. Students will be learning about tally charts, bar graphs, pictographs, as well as being able to answer questions about their graphs (very similar to word problems). Students will be using their addition and subtraction knowledge to interpret the information, which is why I was saying that place value is everywhere.

Unit
In unit we went back to the term 'scale' and tried to create a scaled map of our classroom. Each square on our math paper equaled one square tile in our classroom. Students tried to scale the classroom to the best of their ability, and now have a greater understanding of the concept. It is fantastic to hear from some parents/families that the children are sharing their understanding of maps with you. This is taking great action, and if this is happening at home and you haven't told me, I would love to know :) I would like to organize a field trip to the park across the road towards the end of next week. If you would like to be apart of it, please let me know. We would love some parent helpers.

Literacy
Students were given a words their way spelling test. It is great to see how much growth has occurred in the classroom since the beginning of the school year. I have adjusted some student's spelling words/groups due to word family knowledge. 

October 30th, 2017

Dear Parents,

Below is an overview of our learning last week. Please remember that there are conferences this week - Thursday 2nd, November.

Math
In math we focused on word problems all week. Word problems are becoming easier for the students, and they are showing much more confidence in distinguishing what is an addition problem and which is a subtraction problem. This week I would like to give the students a place value test, and to move on to data management. Our place value knowledge will continue to develop throughout every unit.

Unit
We started our week by reading a book called 'Follow that Map!' Within the book it taught us how to create our own map using graph paper. It was a nice link to map scales. Map scales is a term that students have been trying to figure out, and this was a perfect opportunity to dig deeper As a class we talked about how it is unpractical to make life size maps. They would be too big! Instead, we can create scales so that our maps can be smaller. We measured things outside using our feet. One square on our graph paper equaled one foot. Students began understanding that we were taking the size of an object and just making it smaller to fit on our map.

Students also inquired about the term 'Earth's features'. We soon realised that the term was very similar to 'terrain' from our central idea. I am so impressed with how knowledgable the students are becoming, and how interested they are in learning more about maps. They are making many connections.

We also finished our pirate maps. We used our maps to help us write directions to our hidden treasure.

As you can see, some students demonstrate understanding of a compass rose and a key, whilst others need to continue growing their knowledge. 

Literacy
Last week we looked at procedural writing. We thought of ways on how to instruct people to find our treasure on our maps. Students learnt key words that they could use to order their steps, and made sure to use specific details. Students did very well at including the directions, key landmarks, and using a range of verbs.

1) First
2) Next
3) Then
4) After
5) Finally