Weekly Update 2/3

Hi Families,
We had a fun week! Wednesday was Global School Play Day where students had the opportunity to play all day (see pictures at the end of the update). They brought in toys and games from home. Everyone seemed to have a great time. We opened doors between the classrooms for a bit and students could play with friends from other 2nd grade classes. We also had a visit with our 4th grade buddies. Although the day was fun and relatively free, students were hopefully learning important character-building skills, such as sharing, taking turns, negotiation, and self-regulation.

Winter Progress Checks when home in students’ Home/School folders. Please review your child’s assessments, classwork, and Progress Check, sign and cut off the little slip of paper, and return it to school. Although there is not a designated district-wide time for parent teacher conferences this or next term, if you would like to meet with me to discuss your child’s progress, particularly if you have any concerns, please sign up for a time on the Ms. Kimball’s Winter Check In Sign Up Sheet.

Barrows Weekly Newsletter
Here is the link to the latest Starburst from Principal Gallegos. 

​Important Upcoming Dates:

• Tuesday, February 14: In-class Valentine's Day Party (see below)

We’ll have a class Valentine's Day Party where students can exchange valentines (if they want to), enjoy a “secret snack,” and play some games and activities. Like our other class parties, I need parent volunteers to help make this day extra special. Please sign up to lead an activity or support an activity here: Ms. Kimball’s Class Valentine's Day Party Sign Up Sheet. Students can bring in valentines for each other; however, if they do, there must be one for each classmate. I will send home a class list next week, but for reference there are 19 students in our classroom. Also, NO FOOD OR CANDY can accompany the valentines. Thank you!

Below, students disagreeing with the placement of numbers on the giant class number line (haha!), and a gallery below that of our work in math and science.

Community Building
This week we’ve been working through some expected challenges with peer to peer relations (being kind, sharing, finding our place in line, using respectful language, etc.) I frequently chat with students during moments of struggle about how to build goodwill with one another. Students have to choose when to do things solely for themselves and when to make small sacrifices for the greater good of the class community. 

Literacy 
Our literacy work this week consisted of:

• Learning about refugees and reasons they flee;
• Read alouds about various migrants, particularly immigrants and refugees from the Middle East (plus some map/globe use to find the countries of origin);
• Discussion skills practice, particularly turn-and-talk and whole-body listening;
• An almost-finished read aloud of Winnie the Pooh.

Writing
Our writing work this week included:

• Publishing our informational writing pieces;
• Sharing our writing with the class and feedback with each other.

Phonics
Our phonics work this week focused on:

• The open syllable, where there is one vowel at the end of the syllable and it makes a long sound;
• Learning new trick words: eight, change, large;
• Manipulating nonsense words and practicing our word attack skills.

For at-home Phonics information and practice:

• Current:  Fundations Home Support Packet for Unit 7
• Review: Fundations Home Support Packet for Unit 6.

Math
We launched Unit 4 called Addition and Subtraction on a Number Line. We learned:

• Features of a number line;
• How to locate and mark points on number lines;
• How to evenly space out numbers on a number line. 

We did a fun whole-class activity with a string taut across the room and students had to place numbers on it. Students debated where to place numbers given that there were missing numbers to account for and a set amount of numbers within an interval. It was very interesting to hear their reasoning about the spacing!

For at-home Math information and practice:

• Current: Illustrative Math Family Support Materials for Unit 4
• Review: Illustrative Math Family Support Materials for Unit 3

Science
We launched our science unit on Properties of Matter. We kicked it off with an exploration of “stuff” in our backpacks, listing adjectives to describe things. We then did a “container scavenger hunt,” looking for various containers around the room and noting what they hold. For example, we compared book bins to tissue boxes. We then explored what happens to salt in two different containers (paper bag and plastic bag) when it rains. The results were fascinating! We generated many questions about what happened that we will try to answer throughout this fun unit.

Throughout this unit, we will explore states of matter and materials, learning about key properties, such as texture, flexibility, hardness, and absorbency.

​​Thank you for reading! Please reach out with any questions or feedback. Have a great week!

​Below, pictures from Global School Play Day!