Kia Ora (Hello in Maori): Oct. 31-Nov. 4

Kia Ora, is hello in Maori (New Zealand).

Thanks to all who came to help out at last Friday's parade and festival. My students had been transformed into zombies, a prisoner, angel, policewomen, Indian princesses, the Little Mermaid, Dracula, soldier, Snoopy, cheerleader, witches and Percy Jackson. What fun!
The parade and festival were a "hit". A big thanks to Emma's dad for being our class photographer and Gabby's mom for organizing a snack and goody bags, and all parents who helped the students change. The students had so much fun! I heard one of the students say, "This is the best day ever". (-:

The second graders are excited! This year the four classes are combining their talents for Poetry in the Park. In honor of the 50th anniversary of the classic, James and the Giant Peach, the second graders will present one of the poems from the story. The poem is fun and zany and we hope the students will come dressed to fit the parts! Everyone needs to be practicing and getting his/her costume ready for the big day, November 11th.

The children are also working hard to get ready for our Second Grade Program. Each child is responsible for making the flag of the country he/she has been assigned. This is due tomorrow (Tuesday) along with a wire coat hanger. Your child will also need one regular sized square bandana for our program. It should be the traditional western pattern in any color. We also need brown paper grocery bags, clear/white gallon milk water bottles (no yellow) and stuffed animals labeled with student names (animals can be brought in the week of the show) for the stage.

We will also need volunteers to help set up the stage on Wednesday, November 16th from 12-1:20 in the theater as well as tearing down on Friday after the performance. Thank you in advance. This is such a special event for everyone.

OTHER INFORMATION
* Professional Day for EC and Lower Division on Monday, November 7. No school for students in these grades on this day.

* The Book Fair will take place the week of November 8 in the Janet Root Theater Lobby and the Student Center. We will be visiting the fare on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, but you are welcome to visit with your child at other times during the day. Just email me when you plan to collect your child, to make sure we are in our classroom.

* Second Grade Performance: Friday, November 18 at 8:30am. Refreshments will be served following the show.

*“Seussical the Musical”: “Seussical the Musical” will be performing in the Janet Root Theatre on Saturday, November 12. Please contact the box office for more details.

* Holiday Gift Drive: The Holiday Gift Drive will take place November 28 - December 9. A container will be placed in the classroom to collect holiday gifts. On Friday, December 9 the students will carry the gifts to the gym to be sorted by family.

* “Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates”: “Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates” will be performing on Tuesday, December 6 at 1:00 for grades 1-4 in the Janet Root Theatre.

* Parent Reader: Mrs. Peters (Friday @8:10)

* Current Events: Open share this week and next week we will begin Current Events sharing for the month of November.

Here is our week at a glance. A big focus in class is preparing for our second grade show, which is just around the corner. We will be making props/decorations, practicing our Irish dance, singing songs and reciting poems. If you are interested in helping out, please email Molly Camp at m.camp10@knology.net. In the meantime, please continue reminding your child to practice the show poems (which are in his/her Take Home Folder), dance and songs.

Language Arts
* Phonics: Diagraphs: ch, tch, sh, th
* Spelling: cheese, matchbox, toothbrush, starfish, sketch, sandwich, bathtub, shadow, thankful, crash, live, party, game, try, pick
Please practice these words with your child connecting the spelling pattern as he/she practices
* Vocabulary: plaque, collection, clomping, layered
* Reading: Jamaica Louise James by Amy Hest; James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
* Reading Workshop: Good readers pay attention to punctuation marks to help them make sense of what they read. Comprehension: Authors Purpose; Asking questions about a story helps me think about what I read.
* Grammar: Abbreviations
* Writing: Publishing our personal narratives; Writing poetry
* Handwriting:

Please note: Because it is such a busy time in class, we will have our "Writing Celebration" after Thanksgiving break. More information will follow in the next couple of weeks.

Mathematics: Unit 3
* Review telling time and practice writing time in digital-clock notation
* Experience representing and renaming numbers with base 10 blocks, making, describing and comparing geoboard shapes
* Gathering data, entering data on a table and drawing a bar graph; finding the middle value in a data set
* Solving Frames-and-Arrows problems having two rules

Social Studies
* Touring South America using Google Earth
* Recording information in a web

Science - Separating Solid and Liquid Mixtures
* After mixing three solids with water and observing the changes that results in each mixture (last week's lesson), students are ready to look at ways to separate their mixtures.

I wish you a terrific week. Remember, at any time you have questions or concerns, please email me and we will set up a time to meet.

- Marion O'Mullane

Week of October 24th

POETRY IN THE PARK
The second graders are excited! This year the four classes are combining their talents for Poetry in the Park. In honor of the 50th anniversary of the classic, James and the Giant Peach, the second graders will present one of the poems from the story. The poem is fun and zany and we hope the students will come dressed to fit the parts! Everyone needs to be practicing and getting his/her costume ready for the big day, November 11th. We hope to see you there!

HALLOWEEN PARADE/FALL FESTIVAL
This Friday is Fall Festival and the students will participate in the annual Shorecrest Halloween Parade. The school day will begin and children should be dropped off by 8:05am as usual. The Halloween Parade will begin at 8:30am. The fourth graders will start the parade at 8:30am and be joined by each of the other levels as they process. Please send your child to school on Friday, dressed in his/her costume. Because your child's safety is our primary concern, students are not allowed to wear masks or bring toy weapons. We will help the children change after the parade so please send a set of clothing (children do not need to wear uniforms) in a large bag clearly marked with the child's name.

After the parade, our students will return to the classroom where they will change clothes and remain until the festival begins. Please pack a snack on this day - which the students will eat before being dismissed. You will need to come pick up your child from the classroom at 10:00.


Here is our week at a glance. I hope to see you on Friday at the Halloween Parade. It should be lots of fun.

Language Arts
* Phonics Review: long vowel i/e. igh; a/ai, ay; r-controlled vowel ar; long vowel o/oa, ow
* Spelling Review: raindrop, gray, waist, swayed, spray, crayon, waited, brain, highway, mailbox, daytime, happy, catch, must, stop, lightning, high, weeknight, lie, flight, nightstand, sightsee, frightened, sunlight, mighty, knew, winter, begin, same, gone, yellow, soap, sailboat, carload, snowflake, window, grows, loan, bowl, nose, walk, ten, change, outside, part, charge, starlight, carpet, harmful, garden, market, pardon, barber, artist, barnyard, last, goes, school, night, there
* Reading: Readers' Theater, A Trip to the Fire Station (Documentary); James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
* Vocabulary: documentary, dispatcher, prevent, minor
* Reading Workshop: Fluency (review intonation and expression); Comprehension (review making predictions, using prior knowledge, plot and using story structure)
* Grammar (review): nouns, singular and plural nouns, proper nouns
* Writing Workshop: Proofreading, editing and publishing
* Handwriting: Capital partners (c, o, s, v, w) and t

Mathematics: Unit 3 - Place Value, Money and Time
* Review Unit 2 quiz
* Review place value in 2-digit and 3-digit numbers
* Review coin values and exchanges among coins; explore combinations needed to pay for items
* Review telling time; practice writing time in digital-clock notation

Social Studies
* Using Google Earth to explore the continent of South America

Science - Changes -
* Mixing Solids and Liquids


We will also be practicing for Poetry in the Park and our Second Grade Program. Please encourage your child to read over the poems at home.

Thanks and have a wonderful week - Ms. O'Mullane

Week 9 - Oct. 17-Oct. 21 - Kwasindiswa

Kwasindiswa is hello from Tanzania. I hope you enjoyed your three day weekend and this beautiful fall weather. I still can't believe that it is already October and Fall Festival is just around the corner (October 28th). This time of year is one of our busiest times in second grade with getting ready for two performances: Poetry In the Park (Friday, November 11 @8:30am); and our Second Grade Program (Friday, November 18 @8:30am) which take place one week apart. Please continue helping your child practice the poems for these performances. Copies are in his/her Take Home Folder.

Box Tops and Cash for Trash: Please continue sending in items that help earn dollars for our school. A big thank you to all who have brought items in this year. Keep it up!

Picture Re-take Day: Picture Re-Take Day will take place on Tuesday, October 18. Students must return their photo package to have a re-take. Students who were absent on Picture Day need to have their picture taken.

Reading Logs: Home Reading Logs are due each Monday. Thanks for supporting good reading habits!

Spirit Day: Every Friday is Spirit Day. Students may wear any shirt with a Shorecrest logo, specifically Shorecrest Spirit Wear, camp intramural or uniform shirts. These should be worn with uniform, Spirit Wear or denim bottoms.

Book Fair: The Book Fair will take place the week of November 8 in the Janet Root Theater Lobby and the Student Center.

Current Events: Tuesday: Gabby, John; Wednesday: Lucy, Connor; Thursday: Quentin, Skyler; Friday: Lucile and Ethan

Parent Reader: Mrs. Crupi

Here is a taste of what is going on in the classroom this week. We already met with our Alpha friends for reading buddies this morning and on Friday will help Ms. Conroy's Kindergarteners make something for Halloween.

Language Arts
Phonics: Lonog vowel o/oa, ow
Spelling: yellow, soap, sailboat, carload, snowflake, window, grows, loan, bowl, nose, walk, ten, change, outside, part
Vocabulary (from Koala Lou): bravely, preparations, spectator, competes
Reading: Koala Lou by Mem Fox; James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Reading Workshop: Fluency: Good readers change their voice to match the mood of a story as they read it aloud. When they come to a sad part in a story, good readers add an unhappy tone to their voice. When they come to a thrilling part, they raise their voice to sound excited.
Comprehension: Story plot

Also, in Reading Workshop the students will continue practicing ways to talk back to their books as they read. Some ways that they might talk back to their books on Post It notes as they are reading include: I'm thinking....I am noticing....I'm wondering......I can't believe....This reminds me of....The is confusing because.....I like this part because.....Why.....I think the character is feeling_____because....I think ____will happen next because.....

Grammar: More nouns
Handwriting Without Tears: Numbers 1 to 10 and capital partners (c, o, s, v, and w)

Mathematics: Unit 2 Review and Assessment
* What's My Rule?" Routines
* Review, develop and provide practice for subtraction strategies
* Review Unit 2 and progress check

Social Studies
* Introduction to South America
* The students will use Neighborhood Map Machine in the computer lab to create a map of their own city they created - using various features of a map that we have learned about in class

Science - Changes (see last week)

GO RAYS! WEAR YOUR SHIRTS TOMORROW

Students may wear their Ray's T-shirts again tomorrow (Tuesday, Oct. 4th) with their uniform bottoms to support the Ray's playing in the first round of the Championship.

GO RAYS! GO RAYS!

Week 7 - Hei (Finnish)

Hei is hello in Finnish. Happy October and fall. This has to be my favorite time of the year...harvest, pumpkins, festivals, trick or treating, sunny cool days. We have lots to look forward to over this month, including getting ready for Poetry in the Park and our Second Grade Show, not to mention Fall Festival.

I am looking forward to meeting with you on Thursday to chat about how your student is settling into the routine of second grade and ways to support his/her learning and development this year.

We are in a new month and I will be placing a new Current Event Schedule in your student's Take Home Folder. Seeing the week is short, we will start Current Events next Tuesday. Instead, we have made this week "telling a favorite joke week" to put a smile on everyone's faces. Your child will have the opportunity to share a favorite joke during our class meeting.

Here is what else is happening in our class this week.

Language Arts
* Phonics: long vowel a/ai, ay
* Spelling: raindrop, gray, waist, swayed, spray, crayon, waited, brain, highway, mailbox, daytime, happy, catch, must, stop

* Reading: The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry; James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

* Fluency: Intonation

* Comprehension: Making predictions and using prior knowledge

* Vocabulary: ancestor, creatures, ruins (n.), smoldering

* Grammar: Singular and Plural Nouns

* Writing: Personal Narrative; Stretching ideas across the page (think, sketch and write)

* Handwriting: Upper Case Letters

Mathematics: Unit 2

* Subtraction from addition (minus 0 and minus 1; relate subtraction facts to addition facts)

* Fact families (up to 10)

* Use a pan balance and spring scale, to experience the ounce/pound relationship, and to find the total number of objects in equal groups

* Name Collections (to review the concepts that a number can be named in many ways)

Social Studies

* Create postcard from famous landmarks in North America

Science - Changes - Lesson 5

* Students will explore mixtures of a solid and a liquid

* Observe three solids - gravel, toilet tissue, and kosher salt - and mixing each one with water, the students will discuss the changes they observe