February Newsletter

Mrs. Madden's Monthly Newsletter

February 2014

Dear Parents,
    I hope you've had the opportunity to visit our classroom blog where we've recorded some of our recent classroom news. More importantly I hope your child has been buzzing with information as they share their learning with you each day. We are in the final stages of our Polar Animal Research Reports and I couldn't be prouder of how hard the children have worked and the deep learning that

has taken place.  The children have used their knowledge of non-fiction text conventions to help them research and locate the necessary resources that have been helpful to research their topic. We are presently writing our final three to four paragraph report focusing on the following main ideas; animal habitat, adaptations to ensure survival in the harsh conditions of the Arctic or Antarctic, life cycle of their Polar animal, and other interesting facts your child has uncovered along the way. The children have truly become experts on their topic and have pleasantly surprised me with their deep interest and understanding!  Several resources trickled in with your children and I thank you for the support from home.  We will complete our Polar unit by February vacation, but please keep a keen eye for our upcoming Educreations project on our Polar Animal projects. 

            Important Dates to Remember

   February 11th:  Special thanks to TESPTO... Penguin Lady Visit
    February 14th: 100th Day of School
                                Classroom Valentine's Day Celebration
    February 15th-23rd: February Vacation

Classroom Events

The 100th Day of School:  To mark the 100th day of school, the children will take part in classroom activities that revolve around the number 100.  I look forward to celebrating the successes they've achieved during the first 100 days of their second grade year.  We will be adding a few items to help mark their amazing achievements and place them in our classroom time capsule.

Valentine's Day Party:  Thank you Mrs. Kelter and Mrs. Lindsay for helping to organize our Valentine's Day Party, and a very special thank you to all the families for their generosity towards our classroom celebration, scheduled for Friday, February 14th from 1:45-2:45.   The children are excited to exchange valentines with everyone in the class, and have already signedtheir own names on the class list sent home earlier this week.  In the past, some children have sent a candy treat along with their valentines, please consider sending a special message of friendship, a pencil, sticker or eraser instead. Thank you for your support as the Steward staff is asking for students not to share food products during all classroom celebrations.

Curriculum News 

Math: We have been studying metric measurement where the students have learned that there are 100 centimeters in a meter, and 1,000 millimeters in a meter; they've also learned to accurately use several metric tools to find the measurement of specific objects.  Great emphasis has been placed on comparing objects of different lengths and how to calculate the length of an object when the "ruler" doesn't begin at 0, these problems require the children to write a number sentence, and to calculate andcompare the lengths of various objects.  We will complete the unit this week with an emphasis on solving real world word problems using metric measurements.

The children will begin the Math In Focus Mid-Year Assessment on Wednesday, February 12th. Since this is a cumulative and comprehensive test it will be given in three parts, beginning on February 12th and ending on February 14th. This test encompasses all of the math concepts taught since September.  This opportunity will give students the experience of taking longer tests which will help prepare for MCAS tests next year when they are third graders.

Thank you for supporting your child's math fact fluency by helping to practice their flashcards nightly.  The children are more accurate in their daily work and are able to verbalize the strategies taught in class.  

Writing: During this month our focus in writing will shift from informative to persuasive writing.  The students will be exposed to a number of mentor texts as examples of persuasive writing, a few of my favorites are Dear Mrs. LaRue: Letters from Obedience School, I Wanna Iguana, The Great Kapok Tree,  A River Runs Through It, and The Perfect Pet.

The children will be given many opportunities to create their own persuasive essays on various topics.  The focus for this unit will be to write a thesis statement, or topic sentence and to support this statement with reasons to convince the reader to their point of view.  We will continue to incorporate word choice and voice as the children develop their powers of persuasion. Perhaps your child could persuade their siblings to do their chores or even persuade Mrs. Madden to have a special Pajama Day in school...we'll see.

Reading: The focus for February will be our study of Fables and Folktales from Around the World. As the second graders read these tales we will map where each of these stories originated on a world map.  Next time you visit the second grade wing, please take a look at this bulletin board.  Anansi Tales, Aesop's Fables, and a number of classic fables and folktales will be read by the children.  We will focus on the elements of each genre, make comparisons between the two, and compare two or more versions of the same fable or folktale.  We are charting our progress in class and the children are forming strong inferences to determine the moral or lesson of the story.  This higher level thinking will help them develop stronger comprehension skills.  They are well on their way, please ask them to explain the important lesson of ..."hard work and perseverance gains reward," or as one student stated "hard work promises a fantastic future,"  I know Aesop would be proud!

As a culminating activity for our unit, the students will write a book report about a chosen fable or folktale.  The children will analyze the elements of their book to determine the moral or lesson, and then connect that lesson to their own lives.