Let's Keep Learning and Growing!
Hello Second Grade Families,
Happy Distance Learning! I hope that this message finds you safe, healthy, and happy in your homes. As we now are all aware, our country is navigating through a world wide crisis and we will have to take an "untraditional", or "unconventional" approach to foster and promote learning with our children. Please note, that it's not my intention to burden any of our families by adding an additional layer of stress to an already stressful situation. I know that many of you are now having to work full time from your homes while balancing being a parent and often to multiple children. You are saints! We are experiencing this situation at the Connell House too! We are all in this together! I am here to help! My approach is to think "simply." There are three key academic basics that we all know children need to focus on in order to enhance learning and they are: reading, writing, and arithmetic. I will give you simple ways/activities to assist your second grader in these three key academic areas. For parents who are wanting more than those three areas, I will also add in some social studies and science activities along with some enrichment ideas. The second grade newsletter will continue to be done weekly and e-mailed directly to you every Sunday. All God asks of any of us is; "Just do the best that you can." I too promise to do the best that I can. Any work that your child completes, please place it inside the folder that was given to you last week and when we return to school, I will be able to look over your child's work. If you haven't yet been to school to pick up your child's learning materials, then please know that you can contact Dr. Pristash and she will find the time to allow you to pick up your child's materials. From this moment forward, I will present the three key learning focus areas for your child to learn while they are at home.
First, let's begin with Reading.
ELA
Step 1: Have your child locate this story inside their text book. Have your child read the vocabulary words that will coincide with this reading text.
Step 2: Have your child read the essential question that they should be able to verbally answer after they read the text.
Step 3: Have your child read the text selection out loud. However, our "IT" person is working on trying to create "Think Central" accounts for the children, so that the text can be read out loud to them. If the accounts were able to be created for the second graders, I will email the information directly to you. The kids should know how to utilize this site independently too!
Step 4: After reading the text selection for this week, your child will navigate into focusing on a skill utilizing their soft cover "Journey's Workbook."
The skill for this week that would best assist the students would be: "Irregular verbs"
Enrichment: There will be many other skills that will coincide with this reading selection. Perhaps, you can have your child select another skill that they would like to practice on this week.
Let's now move into Writing.
Students who practice their writing everyday will become better writers.
Inside the folder that was left on your child's desk were writing prompts. Tell your child that they must have at least three to five complete sentences prior to giving them the prompt. Let them know that using proper capitalization and punctuation is important and to use their best spelling skills. Have your child complete a writing prompt utilizing a notebook, or a piece of paper. Once your child completes their writing prompt check to see if they utilized proper spelling, punctuation, and capitalization. I will find more writing prompts to keep your child busy and will email them to you once I have them.
Here's what your child should do in the area of Math.
The students are currently working in the area of Geometry.
We cover a math concept a day utilizing our "Go Math" series.
This week let's work on the following skills:
Monday ~ Attributes of Three-Dimensional Shapes 11.2 on page 513-515
Enrichment: page 516
Enrichment: IXL U. 1 and 2
Tuesday ~ Two Dimensional Shapes 11.3 on pages 517-519
Enrichment: page 520
Enrichment: IXL T.1 and 2
Wednesday: Angles in Two-Dimensional Shapes on pages 521-523
Enrichment: 524
Enrichment: IXL T. 3
Thursday: Sort Two-Dimensional Shapes on pages 525-527
Enrichment: 528
Enrichment: IXL T. 3 and 4
Friday: Partition Rectangles
(Your child will need a ruler in lieu of tiles as stated on the skill sheet)
pages 529-531
Enrichment: 532
Enrichment: IXL U. 6, 7, and 8
All IXL information which includes your child's login information has been emailed to you. Don't hesitate to reach out if you need the information and didn't receive the email.
EXTRA LEARNING IDEAS!
Science
The students are expected to understand lifecycles. Last week, I sent a simple activity with a corresponding video that relayed the lifecycle of a butterfly. Through Renweb I will send an additional activity on the lifecycle of a frog. First, have your child view this "Brainpop jr." video on frogs. The link along with the login details is being provided below:
The Brainpop Jr. username is spristash
The password is Keeper!2016
If for some reason the site will not work, brain pop jr. is allowing parents/families to register and access the site for free for 30 days. Your children love this learning tool! The kids also know how to navigate this site independently!
Social Studies
The students were completing our lessons on "Westward Expansion" prior to the school closure. All of the remaining lessons can be located inside your child's folder that was left on top of their desk inside our second grade classroom. The lessons included learning about the following:
The Oregon Trail
The Gold Rush
The Trail of Tears
A final activity of creating a "Western Expansion" flip book.
Our class was also learning about many different native american tribes along with the specific tribes cultures and traditions. Below you will be able to have your child access a video on the "Pueblo" tribe via "Brain pop jr."
Enrichment idea: Have your child grab a notebook and a writing tool. Your child can pretend to be Lewis and Clark and they are going on a great expedition out west. Have them go outside into their back yards, or their front yards and journal what they see. When Lewis and Clark went on their expedition out west, they journaled new plants, animals, and sites that they had never seen before. Can you imagine what an exciting experience this must have been for these two explorers?
Computer Sites to Enhance Your Child's Learning!
Espark (this site has reading and math activities)
Your child has their Espark login information located inside their agendas!
If you cannot locate it, please reach out to me and I will get the information to you.
Tumble Books ~ free read along site for kids via the Phoenix Public Library
Education.com has a multitude of printable activities to assist your child. I'm providing a link below to assist your child in learning how to write in cursive. However, this site has every subject area and most of the content is FREE!
If this link doesn't work. Try copying it and pasting it into your web browser.
In ending, I'd like to close this newsletter with the gift of our Catholic faith. Our faith will assist us in enduring this very challenging time. Did you know that the Mass is being televised here in Phoenix at St. Francis Xavier! You can view the Mass every Sunday at 10 o'clock am via the link below. St. Patrick's Cathedral in Boston is also allowing Americans to watch the Mass from the comforts of their own homes. EWTN is another wonderful site where you can pray the Rosary, view The Stations of the Cross, and view the Mass. I have provided all of the links below for you and your families.
Mass in Phoenix:
Mass from St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York:
https://saintpatrickscathedral.org/most-recent-mass
Mass, Rosary, Adoration, and Stations of the Cross Viewings from Home:
This site also has a "Kids" link where your children can view kid friendly Catholic videos.
Here's a Catholic word search for your kids to print and enjoy! The second graders love to do a word search!
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