Friends laughing as they share a joke book
Classroom Newsletter
News from Second Grade: May 6, 2019
- Thank you once again to all of you for your support of our Peace, Love, and Books Second Grade Bookstore. It was such a terrific experience for the children! We could not have done it without you!
- Next Monday we visit Paws for Life to deliver our goods. Please make sure you have turned in your permission slip for your child.
- In spelling last week, children finished our work on double consonants plus the letter y. This week the students will work on words with the schwa sound, as in the words asleep and around. In both of these words, the schwa is the letter a. It is the quiet, unstressed syllable in a word. Next week, children will work on contractions.
- The children have finished their rough drafts of their redemption tales based on the story “Old Mouse” by Arnold Lobel. They have been working extremely hard to apply specific lessons on how to write dialogue, use vivid word choice, and to use synonyms for the word “said.” Editing and revisions were done individually and with a classmate. On Monday they engaged in a mini-lesson on how to choose a title that will “hook” their readers and to remember that titles begin with capital letters. This week they will meet with a teacher in a one on one conference to make final adjustments before writing and illustrating final copies.
- The children have made fantastic growth in reading this year. They will hopefully complete their informal reading assessments by mid-May.
- Our new read aloud is Elin’s Amerika; this piece of historical fiction is about the adventures of a Swedish girl in 1647 who settled in this area and her new life in “Amerika.” This upcoming week the class will continue to engage in some pretend play in the colonial hearth.
- Through our colonial studies, the children will be learning about colonial clothing, food, and schooling. We will spend some time finding out about hearth cooking and the utensils that would have been used. They will create hornbooks, write with quills, see how sealing wax and the stamp are used to form a seal for letters, and dip candles. Finally, we will have a Colonial Fiber Day to learn how to weave on a static loom, become a human loom, card wood, dye fabrics, and hang their cotton squares on a clothesline. I will be reaching out for parent volunteers once I plan with Ms. Russell.
- Our field trip to colonial Odessa will be May 22nd from 8-12. The children will visit four areas: the colonial hearth to help cook, the tannery to learn about apprentices/leather making and stamp a luggage tag, the barn to try out colonial games and chores, and visit Wilson’s store to “purchase” items for their families. During the store visit, they will compare and contrast the purchases of the farming family, the merchant family, and the wealthy family. Remember to please pack a lunch and drink for your child this day. We will be eating lunch there. The children should be in uniform.
- The students will be reading If You Lived in Colonial Times to find out what life was like during this period. The book is written in a question and answer format and contains a ton of interesting information.
- In math class, we have wrapped up our unit on metric measurement and are moving on to standard measurement. In our last couple of weeks, the children will gain some exposure to graphing data.
- Spring is a time of fun activities after school. As often as you can, please make sure that your child is getting the appropriate amount of sleep. I am continuing the homework schedule through May but will keep it lighter as the month goes on. The children are still doing a tremendous amount of learning during their school day! Start logging your minutes for the Scholastic Reading Challenge TODAY. St. Anne’s has won the challenge, despite being a smaller school, for four out of the last six years. Let’s do it again!
Important Upcoming Dates:
Wednesday, May 22nd: Field trip to colonial Odessa-we leave at 8:00 sharp
Please let us know if you are meeting us in Odessa.
You can meet us on Main St. or come on the bus.
Pack a lunch and drink.
Forms will be coming shortly.
Wednesday, May 23rd: 9:45 Ride the bus to Old St. Anne’s Church for the final chapel of the year. The blanket permission slip cover the trip off-campus.
Friday, May 25th: Tentative date for Colonial Fiber Day in the morning (most likely 10:00-11:00 and then clean up-thanks to the volunteers who will be coming that day) Your children should “dress to mess” and not wear their best clothes that day. We will need three volunteers.
Monday, May 27th: Memorial Day off
Tuesday, June 5th: Field Day in the afternoon- Children come dressed in athletic clothes. Make sure you apply sunscreen since they will be outside for recess and field day.
Wednesday, June 6th: Last day of school with a 12 -noon dismissal- there is typically no EC this day. Please be aware that we usually have a disco ball dance party with the 2nd graders on this day and sign one another’s yearbooks
Have a wonderful week. Thank you for all that you do to support your child’s learning and social growth.
In partnership,
Beth Bell
Places to visit to further Colonial Studies-
What follows is information about activities to follow-up on your child’s colonial studies and ways to engage your child in our natural world.
Old Swedes Church, 606 Church Street, Wilmington, DE www.oldswedes.org
Gloria Dei (Old Swedes’) Church, Columbus Blvd. & Christian St. (916 S. Swanson St.) in Philadelphia, PA. www.colonialswedes.org/Churches/GloDei.html (This is the church we read about in Elin’s Amerika It was dedicated in 1646 by Reverend Campanius.) I visited several summers ago. The original, Swedish-style baptismal font created in 1731 and the cherub faces/Swedish Bible that were referenced in our read-aloud book are in the church still today! It is the oldest church in Pennsylvania and is registered as a National Historic Site.
There is also a Swedish American Museum in Philadelphia: http://www.americanswedish.org/frames.htm
John Dickinson Plantation in Dover www.dovermuseums.org/museums/dickinson.htm free admission!
Colonial Williamsburg (great place to see all of the artisans at work/my boys LOVED the blacksmith shop)-Williamsburg Tourism is offers super vacation packages each year. You can also visit Yorktown and Jamestown which are in the same vicinity. My boys loved the replica Jamestown Settlement, museum, and ships. I highly recommend it!
Historic Houses of Odessa offers group tours to the public: Hours: Open March through December, Thursday through Saturday, 10 AM – 4:30 PM and Sunday 1 PM – 4:30 PM (last tour is at 3:00 PM). Group tours year round by reservation.
Kalmar Nyckel: a tall ship replica of the ship that initially brought Swedish colonists to the area. http://www.kalmarnyckel.org/
Don’t forget the following outdoor options:
Delaware State Park Educational Programs: http://www.destateparks.com/park/ Click on the name of the park and then “Programs.” Options include everything from full moon hikes to frog treks to owl prowls and kayaking. Many are donation only! My family does these programs regularly and LOVES them.
Letterboxing is a fun way to get your family outdoors. Interested in finding out more? Go to www.letterboxing.org and www.atlasquest.com Read the information online to find out what you need to bring to letterbox. Geocaching is another alternative for families who have access to GPS.