Welcome to Grade 2! I am very excited to be in this classroom and to be a part of your child's Grade 2 experience. Grade 2 is a year of putting together all the basics learned in Grade one. You will find that the first part of Grade 2 seems like a review of Grade 1, and it is partly but there are many new concepts to be learned and skills mastered along with strengthening what students have already learned.
Our theme this year is "Sowing God's Seeds". we begin our LEAP into a new year by "Sowing God's Seeds of Friendship". we will do many activities around friendship, integrating this theme into all areas of our day.
Your child brought home a folder and agenda book today. Please send these items back and forth every day! the folder will have newsletters in it and other pages to be reviewed at home. We'll call it our homework folder to start. Please keep these pages in the folder until the end of the month and we'll empty them then start with a new newsletter in the folder each month. The agenda has a calendar for each month and a page for each week. In Grade 2 we would like the children to read at least 4x/week at home. Please initial the calendar each time your child reads and I will check this every morning and stamp it if your child read. Also, you may write notes to me in the agenda and I will check for those each morning as well. I will write to you here if needed and your child will also print information for the week. Our spelling words will be printed in the agenda each week, starting next week.
Each month a newsletter will come home outlining the topics covered for the month. again, if you have any questions, don't hesitate to call me, at school, or at home (223-8880). this months topics are:
Math: Our first unit is Patterning, and a review of numbers to 19. More or less, greater than or less than, and place value will be reviewed. Spelling will cover number words to start. We will then move into reviewing addition and subtraction to 10, so brush up on those basic facts if possible.
Language Arts: We will mainly use our reading series called "Collections", as well as other reading and writing activities that fit in with our topics. Phonics lessons will also be a part of LA, and you'll see pages from the phonics book in the homework folder to review.
Social: Our first mini unit will be on directions and simple map skills. Then we will move into "Looking at Places".
Science: We begin learning about "Small Crawling and Flying Animals" and will study the characteristics of insects, ants and spiders. Each child will need one knee high pantyhose (beige color is best) for an insect house we will be making in a couple of weeks.
Religion: Our program is called "We Belong to the Lord Jesus", and we begin with "Welcome" and "Friends", which is also part of Health.
Show and Tell: This will begin next week. Your child will be given a day to bring their show and ell. Look in the homework folder for the schedule on Tuesday.
Many of our units of study for social, science, and health are kept in our duo tangs here at school for the duration of the topic. A unit package will come home for studying before the check-up test. we also use a scribbler for LA, Math, and Journal writing, which you will see at Parent Teacher Interviews. Other work will be coming home in the homework folder holes, or tucked in the front of the folder. These pages not in the folder holes should be kept at home. Please check the folder every night if possible.
We will be starting the school year with our opening mass on September 9th at 10:30. You are more than welcome to attend. If you'd like to sit with us, please let me know. We will be walking to the church, leaving around 10:05. Please check the school calendar for other events like our welcome back BBQ and Terry Fox Fundraiser. If you have any questions about anything at all, please call.
Let's "Leap into Learning" together and have the best year we can.
Sincerely,
Mary Ginther
P.S. The year 2012 is a leap year, thus the frogs!
