A Busy Week!

SAY CHEESE!

 

We had a very busy week in Room 13!  Students remembered most of the classroom routines that we established last Wednesday and Thursday - and learned a few more this week! 

Spelling
As you know, we started spelling on this week and your child's individualized spelling list is stapled in his/her spelling notebook.  All spelling-related work and materials (including pre-tests, lists, activities/homework, spelling tests, etc.) will be kept in this notebook and it needs to go home and come back to school every day.   Students did a great job with spelling list week.  EVERYONE remembered to do a spelling activity and EVERYONE remembered to bring their book in every day!!  WOW!

I will be explaining our spelling routine in greater detail on Wednesday at Curriculum Night - so if you have any questions about spelling (now that you have seen it in "action"), I can answer them then!


Reading
We spent a lot of time talking about reading this week.  Students have been busy practicing important reading routines and learning new ones including:

a) how to choose a "just right" book
Every child has different interests and different reading abilities. It is important that each student is able to choose a book that is "just right" for them. If a book is "just right," your child should:

* find it interesting
* be able to read almost all the words independently
        ~ Ask your child to explain the 5-Finger rule to you!
* be able to read the book aloud with few or no "bumps"  (it should be smooth/fluent)
* understand the story
* be able to explain/retell the story to someone else

b) how to read independently
Students in our classroom created "rules" for Silent Reading and they are as follows:
* be quiet/no talking
* no walking around
* get comfortable 
* READ! (don't be distracted)

c) the importance of "thinking about your thinking" as you read
Good readers think while they are reading and it is important that students learn how to think when they are reading. We have been talking about some of the different kinds of thinking that students should do as they read.  This week, we focused primarily on MAKING CONNECTIONS when we read. Making connections is usually an easy and fun strategy for second graders. They enjoy comparing their own experiences to what they read, telling how they are the same and how they are different.  Three types of connections students might make are:  
                   
* text-to-self connections: students make a connection between what they read and something in their own life (e.g. a similar situaton, event, experience, etc.)
                  
* text-to-text connections: students make a connection between what they are reading now and something they have read or heard before

* text-to-world connections: students make a connection between what they read and their own knowledge about the world 

Please encourage and support your child to make (and SHARE!) connections as he/she reads at home! I can already tell that we have some great readers in our class! Keep up the good work! :)

Book Borrowing
Students also learned how to borrow books from our classroom library this week. Ask your child to tell you about it!


Math
We started in on Unit 1 this week - reviewing what we know about number lines and sequencing, coins, and calendars.  Most of what we are doing right now is review - but I'm noticing that these concepts are still a little tricky for some students.  Extra practice at home never hurts!!