Mrs. Ginther's Grade 2 Class

Some notes and Reminders

2012-01-24T08:06:00.000-07:00

There is hot lunch this week Wednesday.

Last day of skating is also Wednesday this week. If there is anyone that could drive talk to Mrs. Ginther.

Four food groups check up is Thursday this week

Just a reminder Speech Arts is coming up on Monday Jan.30. Some students do not know their poems yet. We will start at 11:10am. If you need your child to be first or last let me know with a note please. It is an arbitrary order.

A Few Changes and Weekly Reminders

2012-01-09T19:17:00.001-07:00

The magnet test will be next Thursday, January 19th. A booklet of study material will come home by Friday. Also the Four Food Groups test will be on Thursday, Jan.26.

Skating tomorrow from 9-10am

Free Hot Lunch on Thursday Jan. 12

Treat Sale $0.50

Happy New Year !

2012-01-02T16:41:00.000-07:00

I hope you all had a good and relaxing Christmas holiday. Now it's full speed a ahead. ( I know, I think I say this every month!)

It's that time of year that we will be going skating. The days we will be going skating are January 3rd, 10th, 17th, and the 25th. We will be going from 9-10am every time. We will need to leave the school shortly after the bell and opening routines, so we need rides to be at the school at 8:45. We need rides for 24 students. If you are able to drive, please let Connie Weinberger (0634) know ASAP which days you are able to drive or write me a note in the agenda. We will also need help tying skates, but then you are free to leave until 10ish. to drive us back to school. If your child needs skates, we have some at school they can borrow. Come in and size up a pair for your child before tomorrow if possible. Every child also needs a hockey helmet. There are some at the school also to borrow. Please make sure your child knows if you wants them to wear their snow pants and coats on the ice. If they are allowed to take off their coats please make sure they have a sweater or a hoodie on, not short sleeves. Please call if you have any questions. (You are more than welcome to skate with us as well.)

January is our Speech arts month here at school. Your child needs to find a memorize a poem to be presented Jan. 30 for class finals. Your child has brought home a package in the front of their agenda. You are more than welcome to come and watch your child present their poem.

Last months homework folder can stay home now for review. Please check the folder every night for reading material to share and review.

Learning topics for the month

L.A.: spelling, reading, writing, listening viewing ........

Math: review and memorize addition facts to 18, work on mental math strategies, learn 2-digit addition without regrouping and linear measurement .......

Science: finish magnets, start Hot and Cold Liquids

Magnets test: Thursday, Jan.12

Social: continue Looking at Places, part 2-3

Health: Review Food groups and healthy living. Test on this topic: Jan. 16. Students need to know what the 4 food groups are, what groups certain foods belong in and how to be healthy.

Religion: Let's Treasure God's Gifts and Our Church Celebrates Reconciliation

Please check the school newsletter for other important dates like hot lunch and days off.

If you need a paper copy of the school newsletter or calendar please let me know.

**Reminder**
Choir sings at Church on Jan.8 @ 10 am.
We will be walking to church for 9am moss on Jan.12. Let me know if you would like to join us.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-15T16:52:00.000-07:00

I's like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Have a great holiday

Please try to have your child do some reading during the holidays. It's full speed ahead with comprehension when we get back. We will also be working on basic fact check-ups in the New Year. The better their recall of the facts to 10, the easier it is to work on the facts to 18.

Thank you to all our helpers in 2011. I look forward to centers on Thursdays again in the New Year.

First Day Back is Monday, January 2nd 2012.

See you in the new year.

December News

2011-12-07T17:57:00.000-07:00

Dear Parents,

Welcome to December, already! I don’t know where the time goes. As we only have two weeks left before the holidays, we’ll try to get a few things finished.

Remember, our holidays are from December 17 to January 1.

In LA we will be writing a letter to Santa. The reply will come to your house. We will be reading and writing with a Christmas theme and will be reading Gingerbread Man (Girl) stories next week. We will only have one more spelling list and test next week, and none that last week of school. We will review our words from our agenda in class. Please review the reading sheets in the folder. These can be part of reading homework. Some children are not doing their homework and they are not progressing as much as those that DO home reading. Please sign the agenda when homework is done. We check this every morning. Please call if you have any questions about this.

In math we have been working hard on our addition facts to 18. Some students do not know their facts to 10 very well, so some practice over the holidays would be great on all facts to 18. We will continue with addition until the holidays,then start subtraction in January. We are working on using different strategies to add, like making 10, using doubles +1,2, etc. We do not want to use our fingers to add. Using a number line or counters is better than fingers, but memorizing the basic facts is our goal, to have quick recall when we start 2-digit addition etc.

In social we continue with Looking at Places. Booklet Part 1 will come home before the holidays, but I’m not sure if we’ll get Part 2 done.

In science we will continue with magnets. We will finish after the holidays and have a check-up on this topic then. I’ll let you know when as we get closer to finishing the unit.

In Religion we are focussing on Advent and Christmas.

In health we are working on the Four Food Groups, and will finish safety in the new year. We will also have a check-up on the Four Food Groups in the new year.

The words for our Christmas concert song are attached. Please have your child practice reading (singing) these words as part of their reading homework.

Skating starts right in January. A schedule will come home. I’ll be asking Mrs. Weinberger to line up rides for us and skate tiers. Remember, every child needs a helmet.

Some dates to remember in December:

Wednesday, December 14: mass at 10:15, with turkey dinner to follow

Thursday, December 15: Christmas Concert at 7:00. Students to be at civic center by 6:45. More info about where to meet to follow.

Tuesday, December 13 will be Miss Grobman’s last day with us. She will be coming to the concert, though. We have been very blessed to have her in our classroom and we wish her all the best in her next teaching round.

Please call if you have any questions about anything coming up.

Sincerely,

Mary Ginther

p.s. We will be wearing green capes for our concert songs. (We’ll take them off for the finale.) We need 8 more made. Anybody able to sew? Help!

A BIG Thank you From Mrs. Klok!

2011-11-02T14:15:00.002-06:00

The Brain Tumor Awareness Presentation was on October 24th, 2011

Ginther’s Grapevine

2011-11-01T20:22:00.000-06:00

November 1, 2011

October was a great month, full of learning! At the beginning of November we are doing many finishing up activities in booklets and testing of topics before report cards come home on November 14. Your interview time will be on the report card. Parent-Teacher interviews are on November 16-17 from 5-8. If the scheduled time doesn’t work, let me know and we can set up another time to talk.

We are very lucky to have a PS1 student teacher joining us from November 7-December 13. Miss Grobman had a visit with us on Thursday last week, and she’s very excited to get started. She will be teaching some lessons in all subject areas under my direction. Small group work will happen more often with an extra person, and more enrichment will take place as well. Please call if you have any questions about any of the happenings in November.

Our topics this month are:

LA: Reading comprehension, writing activities, spelling, compound words, syllables in words, contractions, and Remembrance Day activities… We will cover many of these concepts with the topic of Bears.

Please look in the homework folder each night to read over the work of the day. Share sheets are coming home from the reading groups and other reading sheets, and phonics pages, etc. have lots of good reading for review. We are working on fluency and attention to punctuation. This comes with practice! Also, some students are working on learning sight words, and these check-up sheets are in the homework folder. You may keep the October papers at home now, to use for review or ….

Math: Finishing up with numbers to 50 and some calendar work. Students need to know the seasons, days of the week, and months of the year. We are working on a booklet that will be coming home soon. Check-ups of this topic are ongoing.

Then we move full speed into addition and subtraction facts to/from 18. Students MUST know their facts to 10! Please practice any free minute you have.

Science: Finishing up “Small Crawling and Flying Animals” in the next few weeks. “Magnets” is our next topic.

Social: Finishing up our mapping booklet. It will be sent home by Friday and we will have a test on mapping on Monday, November 7. Then we will work on “Looking at Places” focusing on Saskatoon, Meteghan, and Iqaluit.

Religion: Unit 2 “Let’s Come Together”, Unit 3 “Let’s Treasure God’s Word”, then starting Advent November 29^th.

Health: Safety topics continue.

Thank you to everyone that has helped with centers this month. We couldn’t do it without you! Centers will now be on Thursdays from 11:30-1:00 until further notice. We will not have any this week, though, because of all the finishing we need to do.

Thank you to all that sent food for Halloween and all the parent helpers. I could not do it without you! I’ll ask those of you that we didn’t catch for food this time to please send treats for Valentine’s Day. (More info will come in February!)

Show and Tell: Nov. 1-4 – Free Choice

Nov.8-10- something that has a memory that you want to share

Nov.15-17-free choice

Nov. 22-25-Favorite stuffy

Nov. 29-Dec.2 – free choice

Please try to stick to the topic! Please try to send something!

Please call if you have any questions at all. Please check the school calendar for upcoming school holidays, hot lunch dates, and other school wide information. If you want a paper copy of the school newsletter, please let me know with a note in the agenda, otherwise the newsletter is online. Check out our classroom blog! Just go to our school webpage and click on the classroom link. Which reminds me, is there anyone interested in taking over posting information to this blog? My friend, Rhonda Klok, has been doing it, but it would be great to have one of this year’s parents take it over if possible. Please let me know if this is something you are interested in.

Sincerely,

Mary Ginther

Happy Halloween Everyone!

2011-10-31T09:25:00.000-06:00

Stay safe tonight, when trick or treating!

Halloween FYI

2011-10-25T14:17:00.000-06:00

Just a quick note about Halloween, which is coming up quickly! I'm not sure yet when the costume parade will be, but I'll let you know ASAP. I would like to have our snacks for the party as our second nutrition break (1:00 pm). Students would still need their regular 10:29 food. If you are able to send something (or bring it by about 12:45 pm) please fill in and send back the form. I will confirm in the agenda. If we get too many volunteers for food this time, I'll let you know and ask you for Valentines Day instead. Please send your child with their own drink for the party. No pop cans please, as they spill too easily. If you want to bring something that is not on the suggested list, just let me know. If you have any questions, don' hesitate to call.

Some Party Food suggestions are:
Cheese and Crackers
Sausage
Veggies and Dip
Fruit
Cookies
Chips
Popcorn Balls

I would also like to do some centers for the party. If you are able to come in, please let me know.

Thanks,
Mrs. Ginther

Ginther's October Grapevine

2011-10-06T13:09:00.000-06:00

Wow, September sure went by quickly! We have been working hard getting back into the groove of sitting still, listening, and doing our best work. Now, it's full speed ahead!

Our topics this month are:

LA: short and long vowels in phonics, writing for Thanksgiving, journal writing, descriptive writing and reading comprehension.

Math: finishing patterns, working with numbers to 50, and reviewing addition to 10, subtraction from 10.

Science: small Flying and Crawling Animals continued. (Thanks to Katelyn and what I have we have enough panty hose.)

Social: Mapping booklet continued

Religion: Continue with welcoming friends, and giving thanks.

Health: Fire Safety and other safety topics.

Thanks to Connie Weinberger for volunteering to be our classroom rep. She will be calling you to set up helpers for different activities.

Dates and times for centers this month are still to be determined. This week I'd like to try Thursday from 8:45- 10:00. Please let me know if you would like to come.

Please call if you have any questions at all. Please check the school calendar for upcoming school holidays, hot lunch dates, and other school wide information. If you want a paper copy of the school newsletter, please let me know with a note in the agenda, otherwise the newsletter is online.

Spelling words for next week (Oct 12) will be in the agenda on Oct. 7th, so you can have them for the short week.

Happy Thanksgiving and God bless you all,

Sincerely
Mary Ginther

Please Bring in Apples!

2011-09-22T16:47:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone, please send in an apple with each student for next week? We would like as many different varieties of apples as possible!

Thank you very much!

September 6, 2011 News letter

2011-09-07T20:48:00.000-06:00

Dear Parents,

I hope everyone had a great long weekend. It’s full speed ahead!

Please initial the newsletters in the upper corner so I am aware that you have read them. Also, please initial the notes in the agenda. Sometimes I need to write you a note, and I need to know if you’ve seen it. I will also acknowledge your notes.

Your child brought home their agenda and homework folder in a blue bag today. This will be our weekday workbag for the year. It will help keep things organized in the backpack. If it gets dirty, feel free to throw it in the wash. I would like these bags back at the end of the year to reuse. If you have any questions about any of the above information, don’t hesitate to call.

Spelling words for the week are in the agenda. Spelling tests are on Friday or the last day of the week. We do some practicing here at school, but home practice is still important for some students. The words we start with may seem simple for your child, but review is good. Some words will be coming from the students’ journals. Becoming better spellers is an important goal in Grade 2. Of course, some students are already good spellers! Perhaps your child needs more practice in math facts…

Please start some home reading. Our goal is 4x/week for 20 minutes. Students will bring home library books next week, and hopefully some of their books will be at their reading level. If you don’t have any reading material at home, let me know and I’ll send some book bags. The public library is also a great place to visit. Please sign the agenda calendar each night your child reads. Reading over the pages in the homework folder is part of this reading time. Practicing spelling words can also be used as reading time. Don’t overdo it! 20 minutes a night is plenty at this time of the school year.

I have sent home scholastic book order forms today. If you’d like to order something, please send back the form and cheque made out to Scholastic Canada or cash by the due date. One check is good even if you order from more than one form. There are many good, inexpensive books here to choose from, but don’t feel obligated. I will send home book orders each month. If you miss a due date, just give me a call and I can wait a day or two before ordering.

I would like to do centers this week on Thursday from 8:45-10:30 if possible. Next week and on, I’d like to have Wednesdays as our center day if we get enough help. Please drop me a line in the agenda, or sign up on my parent board outside the classroom if you are able to come in regularly, once in a while, on special occasions…. If another day or time of day works better, I can change times to accommodate more helpers. Maybe Grandma or Grandpa wants to come? Let me know.

On Friday is our Opening Mass at church. Please let me know if you’d like to come with us.

Thanks for taking the time to read all this info. Remember to initial this newsletter so I know you’ve read it.

Sincerely,

Mary Ginther

Ginther's Grapevine September 1, 2011

2011-09-01T09:34:00.000-06:00

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!