\n Dear Grade 2 students and parents:
\n<\/b> <\/p>\n
\n
\n October is upon us and we have had an excellent beginning to the
\n year in Mr. McGaughey’s Class. Over the next two weeks, every
\n student in class will be finishing their wonderful Me-Box
\n Presentations. We are putting them into a book for all the class to
\n share.<\/p>\n
Important days to remember in our class.<\/b>
Monday:
\n Poetry books back to school, Gym- (Bring gym shoes- you do not need
\n special clothes)
Tuesday:
Wednesday: Dragons-Social Skills
\n Class (1:35-2:35)
Thursday: Gym- (Bring gym shoes- you do not
\n need special clothes). Library—Bring your library book.
Friday:
\n Art Class, Poetry books go home.\n <\/p>\n
\n
\n Keep up the good work with reading your weekly poems and songs with
\n your family. Remember: Your poetry book goes home on Friday<\/i>,
\n and returns to school on Monday<\/i>, so that we can begin our new
\n poems.<\/p>\n
Thanks to all students for their participation in
\n the school Terry Fox Run. We had fun in our classroom counting and
\n rolling the coins the class donated. The Terry Fox run was exciting.<\/p>\n
Share
\n and Show<\/u><\/b>
Starting in mid-October, each student will have
\n a weekly opportunity to share one story or item that begins or ends
\n with a certain sound. Ie: a… as in apple or ape.
On short
\n weeks, we will combine Monday and Tuesday groups if there is no
\n school on Monday and Thursday and Friday Groups if there is no
\n school on Friday.\n <\/p>\n
\n Monday: Alexis, Colter, Jaden,
Tuesday: Rebecca Brendan, Colton
Wednesday:
\n Jared, Shaelyn, Carter, Danny
Thursday: Jordan Sam, Chevy
Friday:
\n Gage, Nicholas, Simon\n <\/p>\n
\n Share and Show Schedule<\/b>
October 16- 20 f… as in finger or
\n leaf
October 23-27 s… as in seven or bus
October
\n 30-November 3 m… as in monster or alarm
November 6-10 b… as
\n in bacon or club
November 13-17 t… as in table or light
November
\n 20-24 d… as in day or dad
November 21-Dec1 c… as in candy
\n or plastic
December 4-8 a… as in apple or ape
December
\n 11-15 e… as in eat or elf
December 18-22 No Share and show
\n this week<\/p>\n
Class Website:<\/b>
Mr. McGaughey will be
\n updating our class website at
\n http:\/\/par.scdsb.on.ca\/classes\/McGaughey on a regular basis
\n beginning this month. Please check it to see class news and examples
\n of student work.<\/p>\n
10 Week Social Skills Program<\/b>
Through
\n the generosity of several funding sources, the Children’s Aid
\n Society of Simcoe County’s School Based Early Intervention Program
\n is being offered to our classroom. This program is offered for one
\n hour per week, for ten weeks and is dedicated to exploring the
\n topics of respect for self and other, self-esteem, identifying
\n feelings, anger management, listening, problem solving, bullying and
\n building healthy relationships with others. The program includes the
\n use of videos, crafts, and role playing activities. Programs such as
\n this one, have been linked to improved academic achievement and
\n overall success in school.<\/p>\n
We invite you to attend a short
\n information meeting at the school after the initial session on
\n Wednesday October 4. The facilitator, Carol Cooper, will be
\n available at that time to answer any questions you may have. The
\n sessions will begin on Wednesdays at 1:35 pm.<\/p>\n
As a
\n caregiver, your role is paramount. Therefore, you are invited and
\n encouraged to attend any, or all, of the classroom sessions. We ask
\n that you complete the attached questionnaire to help identify any
\n specific needs your child may have. We will send home a similar
\n follow-up questionnaire at the conclusion of the program to
\n determine if your child’s behaviour has reflected the concepts and
\n skills introduced during the program. Thank you for your important
\n participation in this way.<\/p>\n
If you have any questions ,
\n comments, or would like to discuss the program further, please
\n contact Debbie Helinski, Program Coordinator at: 1-705-726-6587 Ext.
\n 402<\/p>\n
Scholastic Book orders due Wednesday October 11<\/i><\/p>\n
Math
\n Nelson Unit 2 and 4-<\/b><\/p>\n
We are just completing a unit
\n exploring numbers to 50 and beyond. Students will practise skip
\n counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s. They will arrange objects in groups of
\n 10 (e.g., 23 is 2 groups of 10 and 3 more) and print and read
\n 2-digit numbers. They will represent greater numbers in many
\n different ways using concrete materials and visual math tools, such
\n as a number line and a 10-frame mat. They will also use coins to
\n practise skip counting and to act out pretend purchases.
Try
\n these activities with your child:<\/p>\n
• Go on a Number Hunt. Have
\n your child look for and read numbers on houses, signs, and
\n billboards, or in store windows. Your child might want to draw
\n pictures or record numbers to share with the class.
• When
\n preparing a meal, ask your child to estimate how many beans there
\n are in the measuring cup or how many forks there are in the drawer.
\n Have your child check his or her estimate by counting. To practise
\n counting by 2s, 5s, or 10s, ask your child if there is a way to put
\n the items in groups to make counting easier.
• Give your child a
\n handful of coins and have him or her sort the coins by coin type or
\n value. Ask your child to total the value for each group of coins.
\n You could say, “You have 8 nickels. How many cents is that
\n altogether?”<\/p>\n
Fort the rest of October, our focus in
\n math will be on addition and subtraction. Students will use
\n materials, drawings, and numbers to solve problems. Now and for the
\n rest of the school year, we will be completing activities that
\n encourage students to use mental math strategies to help them learn
\n and remember basic facts. For example, students will think about how
\n knowing the fact 9 + 9 = 18 can help them to figure out the answer
\n to the question 18 – 9 = ___.
Look for opportunities at
\n home to pose simple addition and subtraction problems for your child
\n to consider. For example, when setting the table, you might ask how
\n many plates altogether would be needed if you had 5 guests joining
\n your family for dinner. You might also compare a number of items,
\n such as the number of crayons and pencils on a desk. Write an
\n addition and subtraction sentence to describe the number of each,
\n for example, 8 crayons plus 3 pencils = 11; 8 crayons – 3 pencils
\n means we have 5 more crayons than pencils.<\/p>\n
Try these
\n activities with your child:
• Play board games that involve
\n rolling 2 or more number cubes or dice and combining the numbers
\n rolled. Change the game so that players have to subtract the lower
\n number from the higher number before making their move.
• Work
\n with the numbers you see in your daily lives. Help children write
\n addition and subtraction facts using the numbers in license plates,
\n on street signs, or in your phone number, postal code, and birth
\n dates (e.g., the three numbers in our postal code are 4, 6, and 4,
\n and they add up to 14).
• Make game cards by writing the numerals
\n 0 to 9 on scrap paper or index cards. Players take 2 cards and add
\n the numbers. The player with the highest total gets to keep all the
\n cards for that round. Play a subtraction game. Each player takes 2
\n cards, adds the numbers, and then draws a third card and subtracts
\n its value from the total. (If the value of the third card is greater
\n than the combined total of the first 2 cards, subtract the total of
\n the first 2 cards from the third card.) The player with the highest
\n total keeps all the cards.<\/p>\n
Goldilock’s Rule for choosing
\n books<\/b><\/p>\n
During our silent reading periods (SURF- Silent
\n Uninterrupted Reading Fun) I will be teaching the children how to
\n use Goldilock’s Rule to choose books that are “just right for them”.
\n Your child will also regularly bring books to read at home as
\n homework.<\/p>\n
In the fairy tale "Goldilocks and the Three Bears"?
\n Just as Goldilocks found that some porridges were too hot or too
\n cold and others were just right, beginning readers often have
\n difficulty finding books that are "just right" and not too hard or
\n too easy.<\/p>\n
When you are reading a book you can try asking
\n yourself these questions to help you find a book that is "just
\n right" for you.<\/p>\n
Too Easy Books<\/i>
A book may be
\n to easy for you if you’ve read it many times before, if you know and
\n understand almost every word, and if you can read it smoothly and
\n fluently without much practice or effort?<\/p>\n
Just Right Books<\/i>
As
\n you read ask yourself these questions. If you answer yes to most of
\n them then the book you are reading is probably "just right" for you.
\n These are the books that will help you make the most progress in
\n your reading. Read, enjoy and learn from the experience!
1. Is
\n this book new to you?
2. Do you understand most of the book?
3.
\n Are there a few words per page that you don’t recognize or know the
\n meaning to instantly? Remember to use the five finger test.
4.
\n Can someone help you with the book if you hit a tough spot?<\/p>\n
Too
\n Hard Books<\/i>
Try the 5 finger test to see if a book is too hard
\n for you.<\/p>\n
1. First choose the book you think you would like to
\n read.
2. Find a page of text somewhere in the middle of the book
\n with lots of text (words) and few or no pictures.
3. Begin to
\n read the page. It is best to read the page aloud or in a whisper if
\n possible while doing the test so you can hear the places where you
\n have difficulty.
4. Each time you come to a word you don’t know,
\n hold one finger up.
5. If you have all five fingers up before you
\n get to the end of the page, wave the book "good-bye." It is probably
\n too difficult for you right now. Try it again later in the year. If
\n you need help finding a book, ask your teacher or librarian.
6.
\n If you have no fingers up when you finish the page, then the book
\n may be an easy read for you. Enjoy!
7. If you have less than five
\n fingers but more than one or two fingers up when you finish reading
\n the page, the book may be “just right” for what you need to grow as
\n a reader.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Dear Grade 2 students and parents: October is upon us and we have had an excellent beginning to the year in Mr. McGaughey’s Class. Over the next two weeks, every student in class will be finishing their wonderful Me-Box Presentations. We are putting them into a book for all the class to share. Important days … Continue reading