International Festival Attire

This Thursday is our Second Grade International Festival and to get into the spirit, your child can wear (to school) clothing/traditional attire from another country/culture, OR jeans and the country flag t-shirt that he/she wore for our Second Grade performance.

Week of December 13th

This morning we heard from Jonathan, Samuel, Shaherzad, Channing and Brenna who presented information about Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Ireland and Denmark and what an amazing job they did. Presentations were organized, interesting and creative. Thanks for the support I know that you have been giving your child at home. I can't wait to listen to the rest of the class present tomorrow and on Wednesday.

Another busy week ahead with attending the choir performance on Wednesday, our Second Grade International Festival on Thursday and holiday sing-a-long on Friday. I am not giving any new spelling words this week, but ask that you review words your child may have missed on his/her quiz last week. We will also play a spelling game on Friday using words from the last 5 weeks or so, which your child has a copy of in their homework folder. I also have not set formal homework this week, seeing the students are working hard on their Europe presentations and to celebrate the festive season.

Remember our library day is on Tuesday and I ask that you help remind your child to pack their library books in their bag. Tomorrow will be your child's last chance to check out books for a couple of weeks and would be nice for them to have some new material to read over the break.

By now you have probably heard that we will have an International Festival on Thursday, Dec. 16th from 1:00-2:40. During the International Day, the children will be rotating through the countries using passports. They will check into each country through customs, once through customs, the children will eat the food and do the activity for that country. Countries they will visit are Pakistan, China, Mexico, Peru, France, Australia, South Africa, Italy and Germany.
What a great event for the children. Chris F. has sent out an email with specific things we need including globes, artifacts and volunteers.

Parent Reader - Gina W.
Current Events - No Current Events this week due to Europe presentations

Language Arts
Review spelling and vocabulary
Plural Possessive Nouns

Writing for Readers - Proofreading and editing Small Moment Stories

Mathematics
Partial Sums Addition

Social Studies
International Festival on Thursday
Europe presentations

Science
Making crystals from salt

I wish you a safe and happy holiday. While on break, please encourage your child to read each day and write when the opportunity arises (e.g. on a postcard, in a journal).

Week of Dec.6, 2010

Here is our week at a glance. The students are busy at work on researching a country in Europe, which they will present in class next week. An outline of the project was sent home on Monday. While it is expected that the students work on this project at home, they will be given some time in class to gather information, as well as practice the art of presenting to an audience. I can't wait to see and hear what they have learned. Please come along to your child's presentation on the day they are scheduled to present.

Last Friday, we harvested the second grade garden, and on Monday we chopped, baked and fried the veggies and had a veggie feast. Ask your child what their favorite vegetable was? The fried green tomatoes were my favorite (yum!). Be on the lookout for photos in ebytes.

This Wednesday, the students will see a performance of The Hundred Dresses in the JRT and on Friday carry the holiday gifts to the gym to be sorted by family. We will also have buddy reading with Ms. Conroy's Kindergarten class on this same day. The students are excited to take the lead and guide the younger students.

Parent Reader - Mike W.

Current Events -Tuesday:Hailey, Channing; Wednesday: Shaherzad, Aidan; Thursday: Rylan, Zaynab; Friday: Lauren E., Gage
Showcase - Gage F.

Language Arts

* Phonics - Consonants s/c; j/g, dge; Inflections -ed, -ing (double final consonant)

* Spelling words - central, fireplace, gentle, gymnast, celebrate, pledge, budge, cereal, fancy, prince, several, getting, probably, never, earth

* Class Reader - The Big Bushy Mustache by Gary Soto

* Fluency - Good readers read long sentences by breaking them up into shorter groups of words that go together. Reading groups of words without pausing helps you make sense of what you are reading, and it sounds more like natural speech

* Comprehension - Fiction and Nonfiction; Monitor Comprehension: Reread

* Robust Vocabulary - wilting, flitted, swirling, trance, route, semblance, distraught, improvise

* Grammar - Plural Possessive Nouns

* Writing Workshop - Writing for Readers: Teaching Skills and Strategies;
Checking content: Focused Small Moment Stories

Mathematics (Unit 4)

* Exploring length, area and attributes

* Paper and pencil addition strategies

* The Partial-Sums Addition Algorithm

Social Studies

* Holidays Around the World

* Europe

* Country Research

* Review the equator, southern and northern hemispheres

Science

* Changing salt water to crystals

* Tend our garden

Week of Nov. 29th

Hello and welcome back. I hope you and your children had a fantastic Thanksgiving break, as I did. We are now rested and ready to finish off 2010 with a bang. This week we begin our trip to Europe and your child will be given a country to research and present to the class. More information is coming your way tomorrow, so please be on the lookout for this. Our International Festival will be on Thursday, Dec. 16th at 1:00-2:40, which our Second Grade Reps. are planning and coordinating. Countries represented at our festival will be France, Italy, China, Mexico, Peru, Australia, Pakistan and South America. If you would like to participate or share some expertise, please contact Lisa Hahn or myself in the next few days.

Here is our week at a glance. We are currently collecting gifts for the Holiday Gift Drive for Marina, Liam and Landon. Please wrap and label each gift with the Family number and Child's name. A post it or peel away label on the gift with gift content is helpful. On Friday, Dec. 10, the students will carry the gifts to the gym to be sorted by family. Thanks for your generosity for this family in need.

Parent Reader - Hutch C.
Current Events - Tuesday: Lauren W, Jonathan; Wednesday:McIntosh, Brenna; Thursday:Samuel, Julia; Friday:Kendall, Abby

Language Arts
* Phonics - long vowel e/ey, y; inflections -ed, -es (y to i)
* Spelling - chimney, nobody, breezy, twenty, keyhole, valley, money, hungry, donkey, speedy, picture, question, favorite, minute, especially
* Reading - At Play:Long Ago and Today by Lynnette R. Brent
* Fluency - Good readers pay attention to punctuation. They pause when they come to a comma, a period, a question mark, or an exclamation mark
* Comprehension - Author's Purpose
* Vocabulary - recently, housed, official, nominate, recreation, leisurely, ramble, archaic
* Grammar - Singular Possessive Nouns
* Writer's Workshop - Writing for Readers: Teaching Skills and Strategies

Mathematics - Unit 4
* Temperature changes and reading a thermometer
* Using estimation to solve problems for which an exact answer is not necessary
* Help develop strategies for adding 2-digit numbers mentally; calculating the total cost of two items; making change for whole-dollar amounts up to $100
* Exploring length, area and attributes

Social Studies
* Europe (location and basic facts)
* Country research

Science
* Harvest our garden
* Changes: A dissolving race: warm and cold water
Comparing the temperature of two cups of water and reflecting on other factors they have investigated, students expand their understanding of the process of dissolving.

CHANGE IN SHOW CLOTHING

Dear Parents,

If you haven't already heard, there was a change in show clothing this year and the students will be required to wear denim bottoms (jean shorts, shirt or pants) for both our dress-rehearsal tomorrow (Nov. 18th) and our program on Friday (Nov. 19th). I apologize in advance for this last minute change and thank you for your accommodation. If your child doesn't have denim they can wear, please send them in their regular Shorecrest uniform bottoms.

We are looking forward to seeing you on Friday. You are in for a special treat.

Kind regards,

Ms. O'Mullane
momullane@shorecrest.org

Student Information Required

Dear Parents,

Just a reminder that we need a student information form completed for each child attending Shorecrest. Please fill out the form electronically, save the file using your child's first and last name, and send it via e-mail to forms@shorecrest.org. The form can be downloaded from the Parents Page on our Online Community, http://www.shorecrest.org/?page=ParentsPage.

If you have any problems using the online form, please contact Judy Roberge at jroberge@shorecrest.org or (727) 456-7513.

Thank you.

Week of Nov. 15

This week the focus will be on practicing for our Second Grade Show and our mornings will be spent rehearsal in the theater. As I mentioned to the students this morning, hard work will pay off when they are up their on the stage, singing, dancing and reciting their poems for you. Our afternoon's will be spent working on activities related to Thanksgiving and we will begin our new math unit, which relates to Addition and Subtraction. Please be on the lookout for the Family Letter, which will explain in more detail what the new math unit entails. Tuesday is our library day and please have your child return their books on time so they will be able to check out books to read over the Thanksgiving break.

Thanks for all who have helped prepare for this week's show, particularly our Grade Level Representatives, Chris F. and Heidi J. Thanks so much, ladies. I also want to thank all who helped paint the t-shirts with the students and sent in supplies for our stage. It is going to be a fantastic show.

We will continue with our Current Events each day. The following students' will be sharing this week: Tuesday - Lauren W. , Jonathan; Wednesday - McIntosh, Brenna; Thursday - Samuel, Julia; Friday - Kendall, Abby.

I have given the students a list of Fall Words to practice this week for spelling. If your child missed words from last week's quiz, have them practice these again for our quiz on Friday (which we will do after our show).

I will see you all on Friday and wish you a safe and happy Thanksgiving. Please continue to give your child lots of opportunities to read and write over this period.

Week of Nov. 8

What a great week ahead, with making soup on Monday (using vegetables from our garden), going to the Book Fare on Tuesday, as well as having a visit from the Picture Lady/Gentleman, performing at Poetry in the Park on Wednesday, painting our show t-shirts on Wednesday and Thursday, and practicing our poems, dances and song in between.

Here is our week at a glance. Remember that Poetry in the Park begins at 8:30am on Wednesday and we are looking forward to seeing you there. Remember that the students will need to dress in a yellow, green or red t-shirt with their uniform bottoms for our performance.

Please also send in empty large soda bottles that we will be using to make our terrariums out of.

Current Events - Tuesday- Hailey, Channing; Wednesday - Shaherzad, Aidan; Thursday - Rylan, Zaynab, Lauren E, Gage

Showcase - Jonathan

Language Arts - Theme 3
* Phonics: Digraphs /ch, tch, sh and syllable pattern VCCV
* Spelling: shape, show, then, shadow, bathtub, starfish, matchbox, sandwich, thankful, eighth, themselves, someone, without, follow, direction, written
* Reading: Jamaica Louise James by Amy Hest
* Fluency: Good readers pay attention to punctuation marks to help them make sense of what they read
* Comprehension: Author's Purpose
* Robust Vocabulary: filthy, fellow, executive, beautifying, renowned, kin, original adorn
* Grammar: Abbreviations
* Writer's Workshop: Poetry

Please continue giving your child opportunities to read and write at home.

Mathematics - Unit 3 (Review and Progress Check) and Unit 4 (Addition and Subtraction)
* Review and progress check
* Unit 4 - Change to More Number Stories

Social Studies
South America and preparing for our Second Grade Show

Science
Garden project and making a terrarium

Week of Nov. 1

What a terrific Fall Festival! It was fantastic seeing you all and of course one of the highlights for me was watching the children parade in their costumes. Gage's mom took some terrific photos and I will post these soon.

Poetry in the Park is fast approaching (Wed. Nov. 10) and so is our Second Grade Program (Nov. 19). We will be busy over the next weeks preparing for these events. Your child should continue to practice the poems at home for easy memorization.

On Friday morning, the students will get the chance to hear the author, Sharon Robinson, speak, as well as watch the production of Henry and Ramona in the afternoon.

Here is our week at a glance.

Parent Reader - Lyman Dukes
Current Events - Tuesday - Lauren W, Jonathan; Wednesday - McIntosh, Brenna; Thursday - Samuel, Julia; Friday - Kendall, Abby
Showcase - Brenna

Language Arts (Review)
* Phonics - long vowel (i/ie, igh), long vowel a/ai, ay, r-controlled vowel ar, long vowel o/oo, ow
* Spelling - yellow, snowflake, sailboat, carload, window, float, shadow, loaf, loaves, below, quite, special, believe, brought, impossible, barnyard, starlight, carpet, artist, market, spark, shark, garden, march, dart, winter, third, street, between, enough, mailbox, highway, daytime, raindrop, crayon, chased, waist, brain, gaze, spray, our, before, because, eight, October, mighty, sunlight, lie, sightsee, frightened, high, nightstand, lightning, weeknight, fight, straight, brother, learn, cheer, caught, lose
* Reading - A Trip to the Fire Station (Readers' Theatre)
* Fluency - Review intonation and expression
* Comprehension - Review making predictions, using prior knowledge, story plot and structure
* Robust Vocabulary - minor, previous, priorities, extinguish, hazard, efficient, instantly, drench
* Grammar - Review nouns, singular and plural nouns, proper nouns and more proper nouns
* Writing Workshop - Poetry

Mathematics - Unit 3
* Solving Frames-and-Arrows problems having two cubes
* Making change by counting up from the cost of an item to the amount tendered
* Solving multi-step problems for amounts under $1.00 and making change using nickels, dimes, and quarters
* Review of unit 3

Social Studies
* South America
* Animals that live in South America (research)

Science
* Plants
* Mixing solids and liquids

Commercial Games that Use Mathematics

Many games you have at home or see at the local store involve mathematical thinking. Children develop their skill in an almost effortless way when they play these games with each other and adults. The ages shown are suggested by the manufacturer, however, let the interest and motivation of your child by your guide when selecting and playing the games (Rf. Everyday Math, Home Connection Handbook).

Counting, Adding and Subtracting
Chutes and Ladders (3+)
Hi Ho! Cherry-O (3+)
Sorry! (6+)
Trouble (6+)
Uno (6+)

Attributes, Patterns, and Geometry
Crazy Eights - traditional card game (4+)
Guess Who? (6+)
Guess Where? (6+)
Jigsaw puzzles
Rummikub (8+)
tangrams (5+)

Strategy and Spacial Perception
The a-MAZE-ing Labyrinth (8+)
Battleship (7+)
checkers (3+)
Jenga (3+)
Connect Four (7+)
mancala (6+)
memory (many names exist for this game of matching face-down pictures (3+)
Mille Bornes (8+)
Othello (8+)
Pretty Pretty Princess (5+)

More excellent games can be found on the Internet by searching under "educational math games."

Week of October 25th

It was so nice to see you all at our Celebration this past Friday. I felt so proud of the students and I could tell that they felt proud of themselves as they got up and shared their published pieces. I can already see how much the students' writing is developing and can't wait to see how much they grow as writer's this year.

On Tuesday I will send home a copy of the story for you to keep and treasure.

There is lots going on this week at school and here are a few reminders:

* Picture Retake is on Thursday, Oct. 28th. Students must return their photo package to have a re-take.
* Halloween/Fall Festival is on Friday, Oct. 29th, beginning with a parade. The Fall Festival will follow. We are asking parents to please sign your child out of the classroom when you are picking up your child's bag and costume and are leaving campus. I will be leaving a sign-out sheet posted in the classroom for you to sign out. Please note that there will also be a sign out sheet posted in the L.D quad.
* The students will watch a performance called Amber Brown is Not a Crayon in the Janet Root Theater on Oct. 28th.
* Dr. Epstein will bring Mr. Bones in to visit us on Thursday morning.
* Poetry in the Park is on Wednesday, Nov. 10th at 8:30am. Your child should be learning to memorize the poem that they will perform on this day called Be Careful What You Wish For by Arden Davidson. A copy was sent home last Monday.
* Our Second Grade performance will be on Friday, Nov. 19th at 8:30. Please join us for a great show!

Current Events: Tuesday - Hailey, Channing; Wednesday - Shaherzad, Aidan; Thursday - Rylan, Zaynab; Friday - Lauren E, Gage

Language Arts
Phonics - long vowel o/oa, ow; compound words
Spelling - yellow, snowflake, sailboat carload, window, float, shadow, loaf, loaves, below, quite, special, believe, brought, impossible
Reading - Click, Clack, Moo:Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin
Vocabulary - brisk, strutted, gobbled, paced, request, negotiate, compromise, improve
Fluency - Expression
Comprehension - Plot and using story structure
Grammar - More Proper Nouns
Writing - Poetry

Mathematics - Unit 3
* Exploring numbers, time and geoboards
* Gather data, enter it in a table and draw a bar graph; demonstrate a strategy for finding the middle value in a data set
* Solve Frames-and-Arrows problems having two rules

Social Studies - South America
* Countries in South America
* Amazon Rainforest and rainforest animals

Science - Plants
* Plants make food; plants and light

We are continuing to watch our vegetable garden flourish. Come check it out next time you are at school.

We will also be doing some fun arts and crafts relating to fall and Halloween.

Have a fantastic week and I hope to see you on Friday at the fall festival.

Week of October 18th

Here is our week at a glance. On Friday, the students will share their published narratives, so please come along if you have some time. Starting time is at 8:30 in the classroom. Help us celebrate this special event.

REMINDERS:
* Parent Reader (Friday) - Mary Margaret Joswig
* Current Events - Tuesday: Lauren W, Jonathan; Wednesday: McIntosh, Brenna; Thursday: Samuel, Julia; Friday: Kendall, Abby
* Library is on Tuesday (please remind your child to bring their books to school)
* Keep helping your child practice the poems for our Second Grade Show
* October 29 - Fall Festival
* Keep sending in those Boxtops and Cash for Trash items
* I am collecting playground equipment and gardening gloves. Please think about donating any unused items you may have lying around at home for us to use at recess time

LANGUAGE ARTS
* Phonics - r-controlled vowel ar
* Spelling - barnyard, starlight, carpet, artist, market, spark, shark, garden, march, dart, winter, third, street, between, enough
* Reading- The Great Ball Game retold by Joseph Bruchac
* Fluency - Expression
* Comprehension - Story plot and story structure (beginning, middle, end)
* Robust Vocabulary - clutched, clambered, clumsy, ached, feud, superior, refuse, insult (v.)
* Grammar - proper nouns
* Writing workshop - Publishing personal narratives and sharing these on Friday morning

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; find coin combinations needed to pay for items
* Review telling time and practice writing time in digital-clock notation
* Represent and rename numbers with base 10 blocks; review time; make, describe, and compare geoboard shapes

SOCIAL STUDIES
* South America (exploration) - features, location

SCIENCE
* A leaf is a part of a plant whose main function is to make food for the plant
* Photosynthesis
* Leaf rubbings

Week of October 11th

I want to thank Mrs. Apter for a fantastic job she did working with the students while I was on personal leave the past two school days. It is nice to be back and I am looking forward to another busy week ahead working with your children.

REMINDERS:
* This Friday is a teacher workday and this means no school for the students
* Fall Festival dismissal and registration forms need to be returned by Monday, October 18th
* Scholastic Book Club orders are due this week
* Library books are due each Tuesday, which is our library check-out day
* Keep sending in those Cash for Trash items and Box Tops, which are programs designed to earn money for our school. Just a reminder that the contest for boxtops ends on Oct. 23. Thanks to all who have contributed so far. Well done!

Here is our week at a glance. The students will have their spelling and vocabulary quiz on Thursday, seeing they will not be at school on Friday.

Current Events: Monday - Lauren E, Gage; Tuesday - Hailey, Channing; Wednesday - Shaherzad, Aidan; Thursday - Rylan, Zaynab

Language Arts
* Phonics - a/ai, ay
* Spelling - mailbox, highway, daytime, raindrop, crayon, chased, waist, brain, gaze, spray, our, before, because, eight, October
* Reading - Gus and Grandpa and the Two-Wheeled Bike by Claudia Mills (Realistic Fiction)
* Fluency - Good readers read questions and statements with the correct intonation, or rise and fall of their voice
* Comprehension - Making predictions and using prior knowledge
* Robust Vocabulary - rickety, rattling, prying, impatiently, romp, defeated, jubilant, master (v.)
* Grammar - Singular and plural nouns
* Writing Workshop - Getting ready to publish; Proofreading and editing

Mathematics - Unit 2
* Practice identifying missing numbers in number pairs that are generated by a rule, and determining the rule used to generate number pairs
* Counting strategies for subtraction
* Shortcuts for "harder" subtraction facts
* Review and progress check

Social Studies
* Introduction to South America

Science
* Mixing solids and liquids
* Seeds

Parent Opinion Survey

Hello Parents! The window is still open for our parent opinion survey. So if you have not already completed the survey, I encourage you to do so. It should take approximately 20 minutes of your time. Also, if you live in a two-parent household, we encourage both parents to take the survey.

Thank you so much for your participation in this very important reflective process!

link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ZBYF22R

Week of October 4th

What a great time I had chatting with you about your children at our recent Parent/Teacher conference. I hope you found the time we spent together informative and helpful. As I have mentioned before, it is such a pleasure coming to school each day and working with such an enthusiastic group of learners.

I am still collecting Scholastic Book club orders over the next week and thank Mrs. Counsman and Mrs. Fratello for volunteering to help me with the ordering process.

Just a friendly reminder that the students have library on Tuesday and need to return their library books that day.

Each Wednesday, the students visit the garden (usually in small groups), which they are looking after this year, along with a group of Upper School students. Gardening gloves and old t-shirts are not required each week seeing I have a class set of supplies that small groups of students can use. However, if you have any gardening gloves that you are not using at home, please send them in.

Please continue to practice the weekly spelling and vocabulary words and provide practice for addition and subtraction facts for sums up to and including 10. Quick recall of these basic facts helps later on when the students are learning how to add and subtract larger numbers.

If you haven't already complete the Parent Opinion Survey, I encourage you to do so. The link is http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/2BYF22R

Parent Reader - Kelli Dukes
Current Events - Tuesday:Lauren W. and Jonathan; Wednesday: McIntosh, Brenna; Thursday: Samuel, Julia; Friday: Kendall, Abby
Showcase Student - Shaherzad

Language Arts - Theme 2 (Doing Our Best)

* Phonics - i/ie, igh; inflections - ed, -ing

* Spelling - mighty, sunlight, lie, sightsee, frightened, high, nightstand, lightning, weeknight, fight, straight, brother, learn, cheer, caught, lose

* Reading - Winners Never Quit! by Mia Hamm

* Fluency - Intonation (Good readers use their tone of voice to help show what is happening or how characters are feeling)

* Comprehension - Using story details and prior knowledge to make predictions

* Robust Vocabulary - techniques, specially, struggle, traction, agile, spectator, competitive, worthwhile

* Grammar - Nouns (people, places, things and animals)
* Writing Workshop - Small Moments- writing story endings; revising and editing with partners

Mathematics - Unit 2

* Review -1, -0 shortcuts and to identify the subtraction facts related to given addition facts

* Fact Families (the inverse relationship between addition and subtraction)

* Exploring weights, scales, equal groups

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

* Frames and Arrow Routines (using a given addition or subtraction rule to generate a number sequence, and identify the rule for a number sequence)

Social Studies

* Finish postcard from a famous landmark in North America

* Practice The Seven Continents Poem

* What is a map? (Review) What are map symbols?

Science

* Seed development (What seeds need to germinate?)

* Gardening with the Upper School on Wednesday

* Changes - Gas, Liquid, Solid

Parent Opinion Survey

Hello Parents! The window is now open for our parent opinion survey. You may access the survey through the link posted here. Please help us identify areas of strength as well as opportunities for improvement by taking the survey. It should take approximately 20 minutes of your time. Also, if you live in a two-parent household, we encourage both parents to take the survey.

Thank you so much for your participation in this very important reflective process!

link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ZBYF22R

Parent Survey

As you know, we are asking all parents to participate in an online opinion survey about Shorecrest as we approach our accreditation in the fall of 2011. The results of all of our surveys--from parents, faculty and staff as well as students--will help guide and inform the goals we set for our school for the next five years. Your participation is crucial to the success of this reflective process.

The survey window will be open beginning October 1st and close on October 17. You will receive an email with the survey link on the morning of October 1. Please let your voices be heard and complete the parent survey!

Please know:

• In a two-parent household, BOTH parents should complete the survey.
• Parents who are also graduates should complete the student survey as graduates. That link will
sent to alumni from the Director of Alumni Programs.
• The survey should take about 25 minutes to complete.
• You will be asked to consider Shorecrest as a whole as well as the Division(s) in which you have child(ren) enrolled.

Thank you in advance for your participation in this crucial component of our self-study.

"Liberating education consists in acts of cognition, not transferrals of information."

--Paulo Freire

Jill Lemon
LD, Grade 4
Shorecrest Preparatory School

Week of September 27

Here is our week at a glance. Remember Thursday is Parent/Teacher Conference Day and no school for the students. I am looking forward to meeting and discussing your child's beginning second grade days with you.

Remember that the North America landmark project is due tomorrow (9/28) and I can't wait to read what the students have found out about these interesting places that many people from around the world visit each day.

The gardening project kicked off to a great start and last week some of the student got to plant various vegetables, which we hope to harvest in time for Thanksgiving. Many of the students were interested in the germination process and so we are watching our own lima bean seeds (soaked in water and cotton wool) change and sprout in the classroom.

Keep sending in those Boxtops and Cash for Trash items, which means money for our school.

Have a fantastic week.

Parent Reader: Jill Emerson

Library Helper: Jay Epstein

Current Events: Monday: Rylan, Zaynab; Tuesday: Hailey, Channing; Wednesday:Shaherzad, Aidan; Friday: Lauren E., Gage
Showcase Student: McIntosh

Language Arts (Theme 1 Review)

* Phonics review - short vowels (a, e, i, o, u); long vowels a, a_e, i, i_e, o, o_e, (y), oo/u_e, e/ee,ea
* Spelling review - picnic, plastic, rabbit, fabric, napkin, Spanish, giggle, candid, zigzag, habitat, helmet, puppet, rotten, contest, subject, suspect, talent, basket, dentist, bottom, mistake, bedtime, homemade, classmate, notepad, racetrack, cupcake, outside, dime, price, teapot, peanut, beehive, seaweed, mealtime, please, beach, screech, beneath, feast

* Reading - readers' theater

* Fluency (Review) - accuracy and reading rate

* Comprehension - characters, use graphic organizers, main idea and details, answer questions

* Robust Vocabulary - flutters, selected, announcement, career, penalty, location, excitable, positive

* Grammar review - sentences, statements and questions, commands and exclamations, parts of a sentence

* Writing Workshop - Small moments: Personal Narrative Writing (sketching rather than drawing, planning details, internalizing story shapes)

Mathematics - Unit 2

* Review turn-around shortcut for addition and to discover and provide practice for a shortcut for addition facts that have 9 as an addend

* Addition strategies that use doubles facts

* Subtraction from addition

* Fact families

Social Studies

* North America

* Landmark project
* Review: What is a globe? What is a map?

Science

* Gardening project and watching our lima bean seeds sprout

* Changes - Mixing and separating solids

We also will begin learning our Seven Continents Poem for our Second Grade program. The students will bring home a copy of the poem to practice. This poem will be kept in their homework folder for use at home and at school.

*

Week of September 20th

What a special week ahead with Tuesday being International Peace Day and Friday being Spirit Day. On Tuesday, the students will write about what peace is to them and decorate their own peace symbol. We will also talk about what this day is about. The day will begin with a special celebration at our Town Meeting. On Friday, the students can wear their spirit clothing or green and gold.

As you already know, the students are learning about North America and this week the students will be given a research assignment to complete. It relates to famous landmarks in North America and requires the students to read about their landmark and answer some questions relating to it. Next week they will share what they found out. We will then make a classbook of all these landmarks that will be kept in our class library for all to enjoy.

Library day is on Tuesday and books are due on this same day. This week Mrs. Smay will teach a lesson and Jay Espstein will help walk the students to and from the library.

Second Grade's gardening project kicked off to a great start last Wednesday. The soil has been prepared for planting and we will begin planting vegetables soon.

Here is the rest of our week at a glance.

Mystery Reader (Friday at 8:15) - Mrs. Counsman
Current Events - Tuesday: Jonathan, Lauren W; Wednesday: McIntosh, Brenna; Thursday: Samuel, Julia; Friday: Kendall, Abby

Language Arts
*Phonics - long e/ee/ea
* Spelling - teapot, peanut, beehive, seaweed, mealtime, please, beach, screech, beneath, feast, between, you're, teach, enough, right
* Vocabulary - disability, position, attached, assistance, depend, responsibility, frisky, affinity
* Reading - Dogs by Jennifer Gillis (nonfiction)
* Fluency - Reading Rate: Good readers vary their reading rate depending on the material they are reading. I am reminding the students to slow down to decode words or grasp the meaning of new ideas and to speed up when the text is easy and immediately understandable.
* Comprehension - Main Idea and details
* Grammar - Parts of Sentences. A sentences has two parts - a naming part and a telling part.
* Writing Workshop - Personal Narrative: Small Moments (Stretching one small moment).

Mathematics - Unit 2

* Students will make up, represent, and solve addition number stories

* Review +0 and +1 addition facts and practice addition facts in which one of the addends is 0, 1, 2 or 3

* Review and practice double facts

* Review the turn-around shortcut for addition and to discover and practice a shortcut for addition facts that have 9 as an addend

Social Studies

* North America

* Landmarks of North America research project

Science - Theme: Changes (Lesson 3 - Mixing and Separating Solids)

Students will create a mixture using two solids - salt and gravel. After describing each solid, students will mix them together in a cup. As they observe, the mixture, they will recognize that the small grains of salt have dispersed in the spaces between the pieces of gravel. Students will then separate the components of their mixtures using a sieve.

Week of September 13

Here is our week at a glance. Picture day is on Tuesday (Sept. 14). All students, whether they are buying photos or not, need to have their photo taken for the yearbook. Orders and money must be returned on this same day. Also, the yearbook is currently looking for students' summer vacation photos and can be emailed to Mr. Napodano at nap@shorecrest.org or delivered in person to the office. Please continue practicing weekly spelling and vocabulary words. Try www.puzzlemaker.come or www.spellingcity.com with your child to help make this practice fun for you both.

The children will bring home the first Home Link in math this week and also sit for their first math quiz. We will be doing lots of practice in class to help build up their confidence and proficiency in telling time, adding coins, counting on a number grid and line, as well as using tally marks.

Library Helper - Mrs. Counsman
Friday's Parent Reader - Jay Epstein
Current Events - Tuesday: Hailey, Channing; Wednesday: Shaherzad, Aidan; Thursday: Rylan, Zaynab; Friday: Lauren E. , Gage

Language Arts

Phonics - long a (a_e), long i (i_e), long o (o_e), long u (oo and u_e)

Spelling - mistake, bedtime, homemade, classmate, notepad, racetrack, cupcake, outside, dime, price, where, children, because, friend, knew

Robust Vocabulary - blockades, soaked, misplaced, principles, deny, consider, opinionated, bulk

Fluency - Reading rate

Comprehension - Main Ideas (Retelling); Answer Question

Grammar - Commands and exclamations

Writing Workshop - Personal Narrative

Mathematics - Unit 1

* Counting Patterns (count and look for patterns on the calculator)

* Comparing numbers using relation symbols (greater, less, equal) and introduce Home Links

* Guide children as they read and display temperatures, combine values of ones, tens and

hundreds using base 10-blocks, and explore addition facts on dominoes

* Review and progress check

Social Studies

* North America

* Landmarks

Science - Changes
* Freezing and melting experiment
* Changes in the state of water. Like all matter, water has three states - solid, liquid, gas.

Have a fantastic week.

Ms. O'Mullane

Week of September 6th

I hope you had a fantastic three day weekend. What a treat!

Here is our week at a glance. Current Events begins this week and library checkout is on Tuesday. We still have spots to fill for Parent/Mystery Reader, so if you are interested, please let me know. The students did well on their first spelling and vocabulary quiz last Friday and all improved on their pretest scores. If your child still missed a word or two, please help them practice these at home. I included a copy of their spelling quiz in their homework folder, so you can see how they went and what words they still need to learn.

Thanks for your support and work with your children. Have a fantastic week.

Parent Reader: Diana Craig (Friday at 8:15)

Current Events: Tuesday - Jonathan, Lauren W; Wednesday - McIntosh, Brenna; Thursday - Samuel, Julia; Friday - Kendall, Abby

Language Arts
Phonics - short vowels e, o, u
Spelling - helmet, puppet, rotten, contest, subject, suspect, talent, basket, dentist, bottom, September, already, every, through, guess
Robust Vocabulary - ventured, described, edge, hesitate, anonymous, unselfish, satisfied, neighborly
Reading Fluency - Accuracy (Good readers try to read words accurately and correct themselves if they make a mistake)
Read-A-Loud - Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel (Fiction)
Comprehension - Characters and using Graphic Organizers
Grammar - Statements and Questions
Writing Workshop - Introduction to Personal Narratives (a story that a writer tells about himself/herself; events are told in the order in which they happened: first, next and last; the writer uses words I and me)

Mathematics - Unit 1
* Place value patterns on number grids and learning the number grid game

* Equivalent names for numbers and reviewing the calculator

* Counting patterns

* Relations (greater than, less than and equal to symbols) and introduce Home Links

Social Studies

* North America

* Maps and coordinates (in the computer lab)

Science - Changes
* Thinking about how things change (changes that sometimes occur in solids and liquids)
* Hands-on exploration: Students look at the changes that result when they drop an effervescent tablet in water

* Scientific Method

Some Fun Educational Websites to Try

Here are some websites to try. Let me know what you think.

www.puzzlemaker.com (you can use spelling or vocabulary words to create puzzles)

http://www.mathfactcafe.com/

http://aaamath.com

www.coolmath4kids.com

www.funbrain.com

www.playkidsgames.com

Week of August 30th

The year has kicked off to a great start. It amazes me how settled the students already are and into such a great routine. Thanks for coming along to Tuesday's Back to School Night, and hope you found the evening informative and helpful.

This week the students will get their first spelling list to learn to read and spell, along with a list of Robust Vocabulary Words, that they will need to know how to define and use in context. I have included a list in my weekly blog, so you can help them practice at home. On Friday, they will be tested on both lists.

Thanks for sending in the paper towel rolls, which the students have used as Time Capsules, which they sealed and wrapped on Friday and will not open now until the end of the school year. I already know that the year will be one of great learning and growth.

Here is our week at a glance. I wish you a safe and happy week.

Marion O'Mullane
(momullane@shorecrest.org)

LANGUAGE ARTS
*Phonics - short a and i
*Spelling List 1 - picnic, plastic, rabbit, fabric, napkin, Spanish, giggle, candid, zigzag, habitat, sea, wrote, again, carry, wait
*Robust Vocabulary - ignore, dangerous, style, passion, challenge, underestimate, proficient, heed
*Fluency - Accuracy
*Comprehension - Characters; Using Graphic Organizers
*Grammar - Sentences
*Writing Workshop - Launching the Writing Workshop (routines and procedures; choosing a topic; think, draw, write)

MATHEMATICS - UNIT 1
*To provide practice with addition facts; and to establish partnership principles
*Grouping by tens, $1, $10, $100
*To introduce My Reference Book; and to introduce the Math Boxes routine
*To establish rules for working in small groups; and to review number patterns and sequences

SOCIAL STUDIES
*Understanding directions (North, South, East, West)
*Intermediate directions (NE, NW, SE SW)
*The world on a globe

SCIENCE
*Scientific Method
*Come Fly with Me Lab (putting scientific method into practice); How does the weight of paper affect how far a paper airplane will fly? Students will formulate a hypothesis; collect data and draw conclusions

Week of August 23rd, 2010

Here is our week at a glance. Don't forget that Tuesday is Back to School Night, which starts at 7pm in the Janet Root Theatre, and Friday is Spirit Day.

Language Arts
* Assessments given in reading, writing and sight vocabulary
* Launching the Writing Workshop (promoting good habits and establish procedures)

Mathematics - Unit 1 - Numbers and Routine
* Introduce Math Message Routine and to review number sequences and number lines
* Introduce tool kits and to guide children as they find the values of number combinations
* Review months, weeks, and days; and to review telling time
* To provide practice with addition facts; and to establish partnership principles

Social Studies
* Map Basics
* Understanding directions (North, South, East, West)

Science

* Introduction to Scientific Method

The students will also have Spanish, Music, Technology, Art, P.E. and library this week and we will also start making our Time Capsules.

I wish you a fantastic week.

Wow. The new school year is off to a great start. Your children are settling in nicely to the classroom routine and procedures. I am amazed at how happy and relaxed they are in my classroom and ready to learn. On Thursday and Friday they participated in various "getting to know you" activities including writing statements about themselves that the rest of the class had to decided if they were true or false. The students also came up with a set of class promises that will help encourage every student to feel good about themselves, build classroom togetherness where students enjoy being in their classroom and develop mutual respect for each other's accomplishments. They also wrote, played, read, sorted through supplies, participated in PE, practiced the various emergency drills and painted their portraits.

Well done, Second Grade!

Keep sending in those special items or photos from your summer vacation, which we will begin sharing on Monday.

Welcome to Second Grade

Dear Parents,

I am looking forward to working with you and your child in second grade. It will be a great year of learning, growth and high achievement.

I strongly believe in the importance of including the family in all aspects of your child's educational programs and I enthusiastically encourage and welcome your involvement and partnership.

You can expect me to provide for your child:
1. A safe and structured learning environment
2. High expectations for learning and behavior
3. A classroom that values independence and cooperation among children and adults
4. A program that will be adapted to meet his/her needs through the implementation of effective teaching techniques
5. A program that will encourage your child to express him/herself through various forms of expression

I expect that your child will:
1. Do his/her work to the best of his/her ability
2. Behave in a respectful and cooperative manner toward classmates and adults
3. Exemplify the Lower Division Motto and come to school with a positive attitude
4. Return completed homework and assignments on the day that it is due
5. Come to school on time

During the week, your child will also see the following teachers:

Anna Baralt - Instructional Technology - Tuesday from 9:15-10:00

Dotti Smay - Library - Tuesday at 12:10 (every other week)

Bethsabe Bockman-Pedersen - Spanish - Monday and Wednesday from 9:10-9:40

Valerie Diaz Leroy - Music - Thursday at 12:00

Amy Pope, Woodward Every, Jeffrey Deidrich - P.E. - Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday at 10:45

Sue Rowe - Art - Monday at 12:00

Homework is assigned Monday through Thursday. It should take approximately 15 minutes or so to complete, varying somewhat with each child's personal work habits. In addition, I encourage each student to read for at least 20 minutes.

Important Date: Back to School Night - August 24th at 7pm (Janet Root Theater).

Again, welcome to Second Grade! I look forward to working with you this school year. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Happy Summer!

I wish you all a safe and relaxing summer. I also wanted to thank all those students and parents who spoilt me with thank you gifts and cards. What a nice way to end the school year knowing you appreciated all my efforts with your children.

Warmest wishes and luck next school year.

Marion O'Mullane

XXXOOO

Slipper/Comfy Sock Day

Tomorrow I have made it our Slipper or Comfy Sock Day by allowing the students to bring in a pair of slippers or comfy socks to wear while in the classroom. Of course, they will need to change back into their regular shoes when outside for lunch, recess and PE.

We hope to see you at tomorrow's portfolio sharing at 9:45 in the computer room.

Spirit Day

Tomorrow will be our last Spirit Day for the 2009/10 school year. Celebrate Shorecrest and wear green and gold (whatever you have).

A Message to My Students

"You're a very special person,
And I wanted you to know,
How much I enjoyed being your teacher,
How fast the year did go!

Please come back to visit me
As through the grade you grow
Try hard to learn all that you can
There is so much to know!

The one thing I tried to teach you
To last your whole life through
Is to know that you are SPECIAL
There's no one else like you!"

Last Week of the School Year

Well, can you believe that we are in our last week of the school year? It is hard to believe. I have enjoyed watching your children grow, both academically and personally. I thank you all for your support in this journey. On Thursday, I will be sending home a summer packet, that I would encourage your children to work through over the vacation period. Hopefully this will help your child maintain the level he/she has reached this school year.

Just a reminder that on Thursday, your children will share their electronic portfolios with you. We will meet you at Mrs. Baralt's computer lab at 9:45. Please let me know in advanced if you can't make it so I can arrange for someone else to sit with your child.

On Friday morning, the students will move from classroom to classroom participating in a variety of activities lead by the second grade teachers. I will lead a dance activity and welcome anyone who would like to join in and dance. After these activities, the students will have ice-cream sundaes for snack and then go to PE before early dismissal.

I wish you a wonderful summer and please keep in touch. I always love receiving emails during my break to see what you are all up to.

Sharing Electronic Porfolios

I would like to invite you all to come join your second grader on Thursday, May 27th at 9:45-10:30 to view their electronic portfolio. The students will sit with you and share some of the great work they have done this year in second grade, that has been scanned onto the computer. We will be meeting at Mrs. Baralt's computer lab. Hope to see you all there.

Splash Day!

Splash Day will be held this Friday, May 14 during P.E. Children can either wear their swimmers to school under their uniform (don't forget to send them with a change of underwear and a towel) or change into them before participating. If your child wants to participate, waivers, which were sent home last Friday, need to be signed and return by May 14th.

Week of May 3

Here's is our week at a glance. We have a Field Trip scheduled for Friday to the Science Center of Pinellas County and we will attend Stone Soup and Dragon Dumplings by the Eckerd Theatre Company in the Janet Root Theatre on Tuesday afternoon. Please continue to encourage your child to read, write and practice the addition and subtraction math facts.

Parent Reader (Friday morning) - Mrs. Peffly

Current Events - Open share this week

Language Arts
Spelling - bought, ought, brought, though, dough, thought, fought, friend, our, through, threw, there, their, they're
High Frequency Words - finally, guess, half, hundred, idea, imagine, impossible, interesting, knee, laughed, learn, lose, million, minute, picture, police, popular
Robust Vocabulary - absolutely, collection, common, durable, halfheartedly, identify, last, rare, separated, settled
Story of the Week - "Let's Go Rock Collecting" by Roma Gans; "Pebbles" by Valerie Worth (Poetry)
Fluency - Phrasing
Comprehension - Making Inferences; Monitor Comprehension: reread
Vocabulary - Multiple-Meaning Words
Grammar - Helping Verbs
Writing - Poetry

Mathematics - Unit 10 - Decimals and Place Value
* Money Amounts with the calculator
* Using a calculator to solve problems with money
* Estimating and finding exact costs
* Making Change

Science
* Simple Machines
* A field trip to the Science Center of Pinellas County and lessons about Plants and Matter

Social Studies
* Africa

The students did a fabulous job creating posters about people in their chosen Asian country. They also did an amazing job presenting this information in front of their classmates. Their confidence has definately grown this year with regard to speaking infront of an audience. Congratulations, Second Grade!

Field Trip to the Science Center

On Friday, May 7th, we will be joining Mrs. Cameron's class on a field trip to the Science Center of Pinellas County. Explorations include plants and matter, which link with topics we have been studying in our second grade science program this year. We can't wait!

More Earth Day Poems

Here are some more poems written by the students on Earth Day.

RECYCLE by Noah and Asher

Recycle
Recycle
It's good to recycle
Recycle
Recycle
You can reuse paper
When you recycle
Recycle
Recycle
Be kind to Mother Earth
Recycle
Recycle
It helps our Earth
That we love to share
*******************************
HELPING THE EARTH By Emery and Lindsey

Helping the Earth is lots of fun.
It is for everyone
You can reduce, reuse, recycle
You can help the trees and the plants
You can help mother nature by picking up trash
Recycle and stop pollution!

********************************

EVERYDAY IS EARTH DAY by Renata

Everyday is Earth Day, making our planet clean
We like to pick up trash every time it is seen
April 22nd, my favorite day to pick up trash in parks,
till the grass blades sparkle.
We need to help mother earth!
Little babies are born, seeds are peeking up from the soil,
It's fun to clean up our mother earth

Earth Day Poems

Last Thursday, April 22, was Earth Day and the students were engaged in various activities to help promote an understanding about how important it is to look after this beautiful planet and what they could do to make a difference (e.g. recycle, reuse, reduce). They did an awesome job bringing eco-friendly snack and lunches and agreed that Earth Day should be everyday. I was also impressed by a group of students who gave up their recess to pick up trash (student initiated of course). At one point of the day the students got a chance to write their own Earth Day poems/songs. I have published some of these below. As you can see, I have a class of very talented poets.

*********************
POEMS WRITTEN BY ELLIE

E verything we need,
A very important thing,
R eally what we need to help,
T he home of many creatures,
H elp it!

*********************

We need to help our planet.
We need to help it NOW!
We need to help our planet though
But some people don't know how.
So, will you please help me look after it?

***********************

Endangered Animals,
killed, try to survive,
few roaming, scarce,
Siberian tiger, manatee, panda, whooping crane,
gone dead, never, seen,
aren't coming back, gone forever,
Extinct Animals

******************************
MOTHER EARTH by John and Samuel

Earth is a planet
Small, but strong
Big and green
Helping us all.
She has helped us through
all these years.
Now we should help her
as she helped us.

***********************************

WORKING ON THE RAILROAD (to the tune of We've been Working on the Railroad)
by Chloe and Emerson

We've been working on the Ear---th
Every, single day.
We've tried to o-bey
Every single time of the day.
By turning off the wa--ter
and turning off the ligh--ts.
We are going to do this
to help our Earth every day.
We will see the Earth the next day
because every day is Ear--th Da--y!

Spirit Day Tomorrow

Don't forget that tomorrow is the last Wednesday of the month and Spirit Day. Dress in green or gold (or both) and celebrate Shorecrest.

CHALLENGE - PACKING AN ECO-FRIENDLY LUNCH BOX ON EARTH DAY

Tomorrow is Earth Day and I want to challenge all of my students to pack an eco-friendly snack/lunch box. Today we talked about how this could be done by using reusable containers, and by packing fruits, which are healthful, waste-free snackables that come with their own compostable wrapping.

Celebrate the Arts

What an amazing week planned to Celebrate the Arts. Each day will have an arts event or experience.

Tuesday - African Kuumba Dancers and Drummers
Wednesday - TBA
Thursday - Chamber Music and Tour of Students, Faculty and Visiting Art Exhibition
Friday - Visiting Artists (workshops), Student Performance, Picnic

For the performance on Friday, the students will need to wear jeans or jean skirt with a white t-shirt (with little or no design).

I hope to see you at the picnic on Friday.

Yo Leonardo

Please join us to Celebrate the Arts with The Early Childhood Center and Lower division on April 23. "Yo Leonardo" - a musical program, will be performed by the children at 11:00am followed by a Picnic Lunch. Bring your own picnic lunch or order a box lunch (roast turkey wrap, chips, cookie, fruit, bottled spring water) from Flik. Orders must be placed by this Friday, April 16th. Please note, pizza lunch will not be served that day.

Week of April 12th

Here is our week at a glance. Enjoy this beautiful spring weather.

Parent Reader - Mrs. Happle
Library Helpers - Mrs. Schnitt
Current Events - Tuesday - Reilly, Devin; Wednesday - Chloe, Noah, Thursday - Emerson, Turner; Friday - John, Erin

Language Arts
Spelling - quack, quick, quarter, quill, quarterback, quit, queen, quite, question, quiz
High Frequency Word - books, should, took, stood, crook, would, look, could, good, shook, cookout, understand, bookstore, cookies, couldn't
Robust Vocabulary - belongings, fleeing, gently, smothered, replied, pleaded, fragrant, grunted, crave, correspond
Reading - Where on Earth is my Bagel? by Frances Park and Ginger Bark
Fluency - Punctuation
Comprehension - Cause and Effect; Antonyms
Grammar - Irregular Verbs
Writing - Poetry

Mathematics - Unit 9
* Fractional units of length
* Perimeter
* Measuring Longer Distances
* Exploring Capacity, Area and Measures

Social Studies
* Asia - India
* Research project

Science
* Simple Machines

We are also finishing off our cursive handwriting workbook and then will begin writing in cursive for the remainder of the school year.

The Dominican Republic Project

Once again, the Upper Division Spanish Club is collecting items for a group of Hispanic people who are in need of our help.

On June 5, a mission group made up of doctors, nurses, and teenagers from St. Petersburg will make their way to the Dominican Republic. They will be providing medical care and also assisting with the construction of a hospital.

In an effort to contribute to this important cause, the Upper Division Spanish Club has paired with the Lower Division to collect certain items that the group has requested including: toothbrushes, toothpaste, bars of soap, new children's underwear, and vitamins (children's chewable vitamins and adult multivitamins). Collection boxes will be available in the Lower and Upper Division Offices until April 30.

Your donations are greatly appreciated!

Raymond James Field Trip

This Thursday, the students will go to Raymond James to view the amazing collection of art work.
We will be leaving school at about 9:15 and starting our tour at around about 9:30am. We will return to school in time for lunch. Thanks to Mrs. Happle and members of the Celebrate the Arts Committee for organizing this tour for us. We can't wait!

Under the Lights Duathlon

Friday night, April 16

It's time for the annual Under the Lights Duathlon. This is the fourth year our school has held this great race.

The Duathlon is a race for children in Alpha through eighth grade where participants run, then bike, then run again. We do all our running and biking right on campus on a safe, closed course. Participants MUST have a bicycle and helmet, and wear sneakers, but training wheels are allowed. It's a great way to get your children active and outdoors.

All participating students will receive race t-shirts, race goodie bags filled with "stuff," medals, and a pizza dinner just for doing the race. Please plan on joining us for a great evening of Shorecrest fun!

Fun Math Game

Check out the following link for some fun math games.

http://www.funbrain.com/math/index.html

Teacher Appreciation Thanks

What a lovely surprise opening my door this morning. What creative, thoughtful parents and students. I thank you all for making my day special....the flowers, the notes, the smiles. I say this every year, but it is a pleasure teaching your children and I hope I do make a difference. They certainly make me a better person and teacher.

Rays Day - April 6

Opening Day for the Rays is Tuesday, April 6. Students and teachers are encouraged to wear their Rays shirt on that day. Students may wear their shirts with their uniform pants.

Week of March 29

Library Helper - Mrs. Shanahan
Parent Reader - Mrs. Peffly
Current Events - Tuesday - Reilly, Devin; Wednesday - Chase. Noah; Thursday - Emerson, Turner; Friday - Erin, John

Language Arts
Spelling - coast, soak, float, soap, foam, throat, hoe, toad, moan, toast, roast, toe
Bonus - science, survey, were, where, wear
High Frequency Words - already, guess, hundred, learn, curve, fair, exercise, woods, prove, caught, world, accept, brought, bought, board, tough, thumb, father
Robust Vocabulary - extinct, pledge, blended, cradled, raggedy, distance, personalities, crumpled, patience, tedious
Reading - Watching in the Wild by Charman Simon (Non-Fiction)
Fluency - Reading Rate
Comprehension - Use Graphic Aids; Synonyms
Grammar - Forms of be
Writing - Publishing

Mathematics - Unit 8 - Fractions
* Comparing Fractions
* Fraction Number Stories
* Review and Progress Check

Social Studies
Asia

Science
Energy (Sound)

The students are also learning D'Nealian cursive handwriting (writing capitals and cursive letters).

In computers, the students will finish their surveys and organize their data by forming a bar graph.

Spirit and Field Day

This Wednesday is Spirit Day, so please encourage the students to wear green and gold and show their school spirit. On Friday, April 2, is Field Day and the students will need to wear a t-shirt in their team color with school bottoms. The students know their team colors, but please contact me if you have any questions.

Relay for Life

Join me for this year's Relay For Life on the Shorecrest campus, on Haskell Field, Friday, March 26. From 9 a.m. until 3 p.m., Shorecrest students will be participating in Alpha through eighth grade, and Upper Division students will enjoy their spring barbecue and concert at this year's Relay For Life. After 3 p.m. the event will be open to the public, with the Survivors Dinner at 5 p.m. followed by the Survivors Celebration at 6 p.m. I am on team Green Eyes this year and trying to raise money to help find a cure. Come out and support Relay for Life.

March 22-26

Welcome back. The students seem rested and excited to be back, as I am. If you are scheduled to be parent reader, and can't make it, please let me know in advanced so I can ask for another volunteer. Thanks for your help.

Here is our week at a glance.

Parent Reader - Liz Jack (Friday at 8:10)
Current Events - Tuesday - Emery, Keaton; Wednesday - Ellie, Asher; Thursday - Chase, Renata, Samuel; Friday - Joshua, Lindsey

Language Arts
* Spelling - enjoy, oyster, foil, point, join, soil, joy, toil, loyal, voice, moist, voyage, Asia, southern, northern
* High Frequency Words - police, sugar, sometimes, world, though, understand, wear, interesting
* Robust Vocabulary - thickens, plentiful, crowd (v.), sealed, carefully, attack, pattern, disappear, role, diligent
* Reading - The Bee by Sabrina Crewe
* Fluency - Reading rate
* Comprehension - Use Graphic Aids
* Grammar - Past-Tense Verbs
* Writing - Editing and Publishing

Mathemcatics - Unit 8 - Fractions
* Using fractions to name parts of collections
* Equivalent fractions
* Comparing Fractions

Social Studies
* Asia

Science
* Energy

The students are continuing to learn cursive handwriting and are really enjoying the challenge.

Relay for Life - Purple T-Shirt Day

This Wednesday, March 24 is wear purple day for Relay for Life. We will also wear our purple shirts on Relay for Life day on Friday, March 26.

An Important Message

Dear Parents,

The Lower School administration uses Online Community to communicate with our families. Dr. Bianco and Mrs. Weinman's letters and Lower Division reminders are posted on a Lower Division blog. This is the school administration's main form of communication, so EVERYONE should subscribe. In order to have access, you will need to subscribe to the Lower Division blog.

Directions:
First log into the Online Community. After logging into the Online Community, go to Community > Groups > Lower Division Group from the green menu bar. First, click on the icon "Join Group." Next, scroll down the page and click on the Subscribe button. This will send you e-mail alerts whenever I write a new blog post.

Change of Date for Purple Day

The date for PURPLE DAY, in support of Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society, has been changed from this Thursday to WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24.

March 8-12

Here is our week at a glance.

Library Helper (Monday) - Mrs. Camp
Parent Reader (Friday) - Mrs. Quilty

Current Events - Tuesday - Reilly, Devin; Wednesday - Chase, Noah; Thursday - Emerson, Turner; Friday - John, Erin

Language Arts
Spelling - climb, kneel, comb, knife, crumb, knot, gnat, know, gnaw, known, kneaded, wrist
Bonus - hemisphere, fraction, energy
High Frequency Words - woods, idea, laughed, though, worry, care, sign, brought, store, fork, pour, score, your, chore, short, more, four, sore
Robust Vocabulary - acquired, assumed, serious, extremely, admit, barely, hilarious, witty, absurd, attempt
Reading - Serious Farm by Tim Egan
Fluency - Expression
Comprehension - Plot (Compare and Contrast)
Grammar - Subject-Verb Agreement
Writing - Form: Personal Narrative
Trait - Sentence Fluency

Mathematics - Unit 7 and 8
* Unit 7 assessment
* Equal Parts of ONE
* Exploring Fractions, Multiplication and Division, and Volume
* Collection of Things

Science
* Energy (Heat, Light, Sound)

Social Studies
* Australia

Field Day on Friday

Just a reminder that the Lower Division Field Day will be on Friday, March 12th from 9:00-10:45.
The coaches have asked that your children wear their team's colored athletic clothing and proper athletic shoes to school on this day.

Relay for Life

Purple Day is March 11.

The Shorecrest school community will wear purple on March 11 to raise awareness of the need to find a cure for cancer.

Relay for Life is on March 26. I am on team "Green Eyes" and I am trying to raise money to help find a cure. I hope to see you there.

Oldie Goldie Tomorrow

Just a reminder that tomorrow is the Oldie Goldie book sale and the students will be able to purchase books to add to their home collections. It your child would like to buy some books, $5 is a good amount to send in. This amount will go a long way.

I also thank you for your book donations. This is what makes Oldie Goldie successful. Have fun reading with your children.

March 1-5

It was wonderful meeting with you this past week and sharing what great work your children have been doing. I can't believe we are now in March and spring is around the corner - as well as lots more learning and growing.

Here is our week at a glance. I wish you a terrific week.

Parent Reader - Mrs. Peffly

Current Events - Tuesday - Emery, Keaton; Wednesday - Ellie, Asher; Thursday - Renata, Chase, Samuel; Friday - Joshua, Lindsey

Language Arts
Spelling - ladle, bubble, puzzle, riddle, table, cattle, beetle, nibble, castle, cradle, maple, rattle
Bonus Spelling - February, Australia, marsupial
High Frequency Words - already, accept, woods, curve, coming, worry, out, town, count, crowd, ground, now, found, crown, sound, down
Robust Vocabulary - allowance, rosy, bargain, spoiled, comfortable, boost, exchanged, delivered, thrifty, industrious
Story of the Week - A Chair for my Mother by Vera B. Williams
Fluency - Expression
Comprehension - Plot, Compare and Contrast, Using Story Structure
Grammar - Past-Tense Action Verbs
Writing - Form:Revisit Personal Narrative; Trait:Sentence Fluency

Mathematics - Unit 7
* Middle Value (Medium) of a Set of Data
* Frequency Distributions
* Review Partial Sums and Unit 7 concepts
* Math Quiz (at the end of the week)

Social Studies
* Australia

Science
* Energy (Heat, Light and Sound)

WANTED: USED BOOKS

The Oldie Goldie book fair is just around the corner. Don't forget to clear those shelves and bring in your books. The fair will be this Friday, March 5th.

Week of February 22nd

Another four day week, with Wednesday being Conference Day. I wish you a wonderful week and look forward to meeting with you about your students. What progress they have made since our last conference.

Library Helper - Mrs. Leonhirth
Parent Reader - Mrs. Camp
Current Events - Tuesday - Reilly, Devin; Wednesday (make-up any day this week) - Chloe, Noah; Thursday - Emerson, Turner; Friday - John, Erin

Language Arts
Spelling - hotter, later, sharper, hottest, latest, sharpest, larger, redder, wider, largest, reddest, widest, believe, different, quite
High Frequency (review) - question, something, sure, enjoy, coming, idea, quite, believe, different, guess (I did not include these words on the homework record sheet this week)
Robust Vocabulary - encountered, originated, sleuths, host, statue, risk, responds, accurately, opponent, impulsive
Reading - Readers' Theatre - What's My Job? (Game Show)
Fluency - Intonation, accuracy
Grammar (Review) - Adjectives, adjectives for senses, number words, words that compare
Writing - Biography; Personal Narrative (Small Moments)

Mathematics - Unit 7
* Patterns in doubles and halves
* Exploring weights, equal sharing and patterns
* Middle Value (Median) of a Set of Data

Social Studies
Australia

Science
Fossils

Spirit Day Tomorrow

The Shorecrest Boys Varsity Basketball team won the Regional Quarter finals last Thursday night and tomorrow will play in the Semi Finals here at Shorecrest at 7:00 in the Crisp Gym. To show our support, tomorrow will be a special Spirit Day!

Show your Charger Spirit by wearing GREEN and GOLD tomorrow to support our team!

Week of Feb. 16th

I hope you all had a terrific four day weekend. Another short week this week but I have given the students a new list of vocabulary and spelling words. Please continue to encourage them to read each day and learn these words. I wish you a wonderful week and thanks for supporting your child's learning.

Parent Reader - Karen Quilty
Current Events - Tuesday - Emery, Keaton; Wednesday - Ellie, Asher; Thursday - Renata, Chase, Samuel; Friday - Joshua and Lindsey

Language Arts
Spelling - becoming, dawdled, swimming, borrowed, feeding, tripped, cleaning, printed, wrapped, clearing, reading, yawning, because, September, responsibility
High Frequency Words - gear, deer, fear, year, cheer, near, hear, clear, steer, rear
Robust Vocabulary - brew, snug, supplies, crop, provide, earn, committee, experiments, innovation, edible
Reading - The Life of George Washington Carver by Joli K. Stevens (Biography); Nutty Facts about Peanuts from Ranger Rick by Gail Skroback Hennessey
Fluency - Accuracy
Comprehension - Locate Information; Use Reference Resources; Ask Questions
Grammar - Words that Compare
Writing - Biography - Graphic Organizers; Small Moments (Revision)

Mathematics - Unit 7 - Patterns and Rules
* Patterns in Counting
* Extending Complements of 10

Social Studies
* Australia

Science
* Fossils

Spirit Day Tomorrow

Don't forget to wear your green and gold tomorrow (Feb. 17th) for Spirit Day.

Week of February 8th

The students did a fabulous job performing for their Grandparents and Special Friends last Friday. What a talented group of children. Congratulations!

The students have a four day week this week at school and we will be doing some review. I did include a new list of spelling words and high frequency words though, but please note that we will be reviewing the robust vocabulary in class, so I have not sent a new list your way with the homework. I also am no longer sending home a Current Events calendar, seeing I post this information each week on my blog. Have a wonderful week.

Library Helper - Mrs. Ryan

Current Events - Tuesday - Reilly, Devin; Wednesday - Chase, Noah; Thursday - Emma, Turner, John and Erin

Language Arts
Spelling Words - grief, believe, niece, chief, shield, brief, piece, wield, thief, yield, field, belief
High Frequency Words - gear, deer, fear, year, cheer, near, hear, clear, steer, rear
Reader - "Ah, Music!" by Aliki (continued from last week)
Comprehension Assessment
Grammar - Adjective review
Writing - Non-Fiction Paragraph; A Small Moment

Mathematics - Unit 6
* Exploring Arrays
* Subtraction Strategies
* Multiplies of Equal Groups
* Multiplication - Array Number Stories

Social Studies
* Antarctica Review

Science
* Fossils

We will also be doing some activities related to President's Day and we have our Valentine Exchange on Thursday (Feb. 11)

Valentine Exchange

We will exchange Valentine's cards on Thursday afternoon (February 11). If your child wants to participate, please make sure they include all children from the class (so everyone feels included). We have 17 children in class and if you need a list of names, please refer to the front pages of the School Directory. Thanks so much.

February 1-5

Here is our week at a glance. I have outlined a separate blog about Reading Week and Grandparents and Friends Day, which I ask you to read. Thanks and have a great week.

Parent Reader - Dianna Peffly
Current Events - Tuesday - Emery, Keaton; Wednesday - Ellie, Asher; Thursday - Renata, Chase, Samuel; Friday - Joshua, Lindsey

Language Arts
Spelling - below, grocery, close, grown, clover, pillow, fellow, solo, flow, window, crow, hotel
High-Frequency Words - join, boil, joy, soil, noise, boy, voice, point, toy, coin
Robust Vocabulary - attract, territory, volume, expression, creative, performance, concentrate, relieved, universal, audible
Reading - "Ah, Music!" by Aliki (nonfiction)
Fluency - Accuracy
Comprehension - Locate information; use reference sources; answer questions
Grammar - Number words
Writing - Small moments

Mathematics - Unit 6
* Tallying and graphing data
* Mixed Addition and Subtraction Stories
* Subtraction Strategies
* Exploring Arrays, Coins and Division
* Multiples of Equal Groups

Science
* Fossils

Social Studies
* Penguin research
* Antarctica

Grandparents and Special Friends Day

On Friday, February 5th is Grandparents and Special Friend's Day and our second graders will perform in the morning for our guests. The students will be required to wear a black, red, or yellow shirt/t-shirt for this performance with their Shorecrest uniform bottoms. Students will get changed back into their regular school uniform after the performance.