Mrs. Bice's Second Grade

Nonfiction

Readers AND writers loved immersing themselves in the world of nonfiction this week! We looked closer at nonfiction and realized that when we read nonfiction, it is to learn more information. The comprehension piece is so important for 2nd grade readers to grasp. Often times, we find that 2nd graders are so excited that they can finally read harder and longer books that they forget to comprehend the text. Remind your reader often to stop and think about the text.

As writers we worked on our leads and trying to hook our reader right from the beginning. We studied some mentor texts and discovered that authors have really interesting ways of hooking us. Sometimes they ask a question like “What’s for dinner?” and then they tell us about what an animal might eat! Writers loved revising their writing and hooking their reader!

Inauguration

On Wednesday we read an article about the inauguration, learned about the new president and VP and about the special ceremony that takes place! We had some great conversations about female leaders and what the future holds!

Math

Money, money, MONEY! Our math curriculum circled back to coins! Counting coins and making change is so much harder for kids because as adults, we don’t keep much cash/coins around the house! Please try to encourage your child to practicing counting and making change with coins as much as you can! Exposure and practice is key when it comes to counting money! This week we practiced making change at a pretend market! This is a very difficult task for 2nd graders who don’t have a firm grasp on their number sense!

Science

This week we took a closer look at landforms. Through nonfiction books and inquiry we became experts on landforms. Scientists were able to create landforms with sand! They loved getting creative and sandy! Hands-on learning at its best! We finished the week creating landform flip books! Next week we will conduct some experiments on erosion!

Social Emotional Learning

During our morning meetings this week we focused on “friendship.” It may sound like a basic concept for 2nd graders but friendships begin to get complicated in 2nd grade! Kids have more opinions on their preferences in friends and it can be difficult to navigate those relationships! We began the week talking about what makes a great friend! We then finished the week talking about healthy and unhealthy friendships! Collaborative groups worked together to read different scenarios and decide if the friendship is healthy or unhealthy! We will continue to have these important conversations in the classroom to promote positive relationships among the kids!

We finished the week creating “Identity Webs.” We wrote down things that are part of our identify. They could be sports, family, interests, hobbies etc. These identity webs will not only serve as classroom decor but they will also help students to show others who they are and help students to connect with each other! The webs will also help reluctant writers to give them ideas!

Valentine’s Day

We will be able to celebrate V-Day! Yippppeee! Although we can’t have visitors we will still be able to pass out Valentines and have a fun day! I am asking that all Valentines be turned in on February 8th. We will celebrate and pass out Valentines on February 12. Students can write their friends names on Valentines or can just sign their name. Whichever your child is most comfortable with is great! Please reach out to me if you would like a class list! We have 24 students! I am asking that each child bring in a cereal box! We will be decorating these as our Valentine’s Day boxes in class! Feel free to send the box in anytime before Thursday, February 11! Monday I will send out a signup genius and ask for a few donations for our party!