We Planted Beans Today!

After learning about the life cycle of a plant and all about beans, students had the opportunity to plant bean seeds today. We are very excited to see how long it will take for the little plant to poke through the soil.

We had a fire drill early in the day. Students did a fabulous job!

We are learning how to identify the topic, main idea, and details in reading passages. I tried to carry this idea over to writing by using a hamburger graphic organizer in which the top bun represented the topic sentence, the bottom bun was the closing sentence, and the insides (meat, lettuce, tomato, etc.) were the details. Students were so confused by the hamburger! They thought I wanted them to write about a hamburger! Oh, my! I will try a different approach tomorrow.

I started using Class Dojo today. You should have received an email from me. If you respond to it you will be connected and will be able to see remarks about your child's behavior throughout the day. The students were really excited about it. Each time I give someone a thumbs-up, the computer makes a sound that gets everyone's attention. This gets everyone on task in a hurry. So far, I love it!! It is a little difficult to get to the computer too often during the day and my Windows phone (BLAH!) does not have the app. 

Science Unit - Life Cycle of a Plant

We started our science unit on the life cycle of plants today. We read a book called One Bean that introduced us to what happens to plants and how to begin the process. We examined lima beans -- ones that had been soaked overnight and some dried ones. Students made notes about the skin and the insides of the beans.

The 4th Little Pig

Students waited all week for this day to arrive. Throughout the week we have been discussing the differences between the city and the country. We have also read several versions of City Mouse/Country Mouse and the Three Little Pigs. For our STEM project today, students pretended to the the 4th little pig, who we assumed to be a country pig. The only building materials he had available were marshmallows and toothpicks. Students had to work together to build a dwelling that would be strong enough to withstand the Big, Bad Wolf's huffing and puffing. We had lots of fun with this activity.

Sentence Writing Activity

Mrs. Keane was our guest teacher during writing today! She introduced an activity in which students were given a card with a word on it. Side one had the word beginning with a lowercase letter and side two had the same word beginning with an uppercase letter. Students had to arrange themselves so that they made a sentence, making sure that they turned their card the proper way, showing only an uppercase letter at the beginning and ending with proper punctuation. They were also challenged to create a different sentence using the same words in different order. They did a fantastic job!

Practicing Spelling Words

I was looking for new and creative ways for students to practice their spelling words and came across a site written by a mother/teacher. She lists 75 ways to practice spelling words. Check it out. You might not have all these materials at home, but let your child choose a way that appeals to them for that nightly practice.
http://www.momto2poshlildivas.com/2012/10/75-fun-ways-to-practice-and-learn.html

Fun Friday

I heard the most incredible phrase uttered several times at the end of the day, "This was the BEST day ever!" Wow! I think it was because of the STEM engineering challenge that students did at the end of the day. Their goal was to build the most accurate Minecraft Creeper as fast as possible. The class was divided into 3 groups (I used an online random name picker to determine the groups). The parts of the creeper were printed onto cardstock and were very tiny. I almost scrapped the idea because I was afraid the pieces were too small and would be too difficult to fold. I decided to try it anyway, so I gave them practice pieces earlier in the day that were larger. They did so well with the larger pieces that I knew everything would be alright. I loved that students were helping friends in different groups, giving them tips on how to fold the pieces and how to assemble the creeper. Look at these happy, satisfied faces!

 

Guest Readers

We had a great day in 2nd grade! We were a little confused about whether or not special attire was required for PE, but talked to Coach Cox and found out that 2nd graders can wear uniforms on PE day as long as they are wearing tennis shoes. Phew! That saves lots of time!

We have started Writer's Workshop and are discussing the types of things students might want to write about and what to do when you can't think of anything. We have a special folder for our writing. Works in progress are kept in the left side and finished pieces go on the right side. Most students love sharing their great writing with their classmates.

A couple of students had asked if they could read a book to the class and today we had the perfect opportunity. I was so impressed with the fluency, the animation, and the ability to stop and show the pictures! It's definitely an advanced skill! (I apologize...Google apparently isn't in the mood to upload my photos today. I'll try again another day.)