It's about time for an update!

My math group started a geometry unit today. The students learned some terms that may have been unfamiliar before today. We learned about solid figures, flat surfaces, edges, faces, and vertices. We learned that some solid figures that roll have "flat surfaces" (the bottom of a cone and the top and bottom of a cylinder), and that solid figures that do not roll have flat surfaces called "faces" (rectangular prisms, pyramids, and cubes). Ask your child to look around the house for items that are shaped like  a cone, sphere, pyramid, cylinder, cube, or rectangular prism.

Your little history buffs have enjoyed learning about the Civil War, the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman, and Abraham Lincoln. See if they can tell you about the Emancipation Proclamation. They can tell you that the Underground Railroad isn't a railroad at all, and that it's not even underground. We watched a great video that showed Harriet Tubman, the modern "Moses", lead her people to safety. Ask your child why her nickname was Moses and why people called Abraham Lincoln "Honest Abe."

The Mariner Fun Run is coming up on Saturday, March 21st. I will be walking in it (not running) and I hope that many of you will be participating as well. It should be a fun day and hopefully the weather will cooperate. I'm sure your child has told you that there's a prize for the class with the highest percentage of participation, so don't forget to sign up! We're a competitive bunch! By the way, we won the contest for collecting the most loose change and will enjoy an ice cream cake celebration next Friday, March 13th!

Simple Machines

We are having lots of fun studying simple machines. There are so many things we use every day that I would have never considered simple or even complex machines. Did you know that a non-electric can opener is made up of 4 simple machines: a wedge (the cutting blade), a lever (the 2 handles you squeeze together), a wheel and axle (the handle that turns), and gears? Wow! I am so impressed by how quickly the second graders are picking up all this information!

Today we learned a little more about the pulley. Students worked in groups to lift miniature buckets off the ground using a pulley. Here are some pictures.

Best Birthday Ever!

Thanks for making me feel so special today! I had the best birthday ever! I came in this morning to find even more decorations on my whiteboard.  Mrs. Carsner and both 2nd grade classes spent some time this morning decorating the room with black balloons and black streamers. I received flowers from 3 different students, lip balm for another student, and several sweet cards. I bought a cake to share with both 2nd grade classes, and Ben brought cupcakes, too! Sorry, folks, but we had a lot of sugar today. We also watched the parade practice, where I received the surprise of the entire student body singing happy birthday to me.  Ahh....now for a good night's sleep before tomorrow's field trip.

Fun Day!

I started out a little grumpy today, but seeing the faces of my "Tweetie Pies" made me feel better. For our Bible lesson, I gave each student some clay and told them to build a statue dedicated to God. They came up with some nice ideas, such as stars, crosses, hearts, etc. Next, I told them the story of King Hezekiah and how he told the people to destroy the idols they had created. The students had to destroy their statues. It was fun to watch them smash, squish, and pound them!

We have been learning about the parts of a friendly letter so students have been learning to write their own address. Today, they wrote letters to Santa, which I promised to deliver.

Tomorrow is my 50th birthday and the students are just as excited as I am about it. They wrote a nice message to brighten my day.

Mayflower Building

Mayflower Building
Click the link above to see a slideshow of some photos from our Mayflower building STEM project. Thanks for everyone for the hands-on help and for the materials you sent in. We had a blast!!

More Landforms

Kamryn's mountain

Skylar's island

Ben's edible Grand Canyon

Angelina's volcano

Olivia's island

Landform Presentations

Landform projects were due yesterday and today some students were able to share theirs with the class. (The rest will share tomorrow.) It appears that they enjoyed this project, so you can expect more hands-on projects like this one in the future. Here are some pics of those who presented today.