Cornfield Class News

Week of February 13th, 2012

2012-02-07T08:06:00.000-08:00

President's Day

During the month of February we celebrate President's Day to honor all our presidents past and present. Since George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were born in February they tend to be the focus of our month. In keeping with that tradition and to familiarize our children with these two men who were so influential in our countries history, Mrs. Onorato and I have planned a joint activity. Mrs. Onorato's class will research George Washington and "teach" our class about him. Our class will become experts on Abraham Lincoln and impart our knowledge on the students in Mrs. Onorato's class. The children are encouraged to visit their own library to check out a biography on Abraham Lincoln (and George Washington, if you'd like) and read it with you at home. They can also bring any books they check out to school and share it with the class.

Reading/Writing Workshop

In reading we will focus on biographies. The children will work on a timeline after reading a biography of a famous person. They will share some of the information on their timeline with the class.

Valentine's Party

Our party will be Tuesday from 2:00 to 3:00. Every child should bring a Valentine for each of their classmates, cards only, no edible treats please. They will be having something to eat at the party.

Math

We have begun a new chapter in math. We are learning about solid geometric shapes. In addition to the names of the shapes the childlren will learn about the attributes of solid figures, face, edge, and vertex.

Have a Heart...Lend a Can

We collected 146 cans!!! Thank you for your generosity!

Week of February 6th, 2012

2012-02-01T08:41:00.000-08:00

Reading

We will start Theme 4 in our series which is entitled Amazing Animals.

The first story in the theme is a humorous story about a policeman who loves to give safety tips to school children but no one ever listens...until he brings a dog named Gloria.

The comprehension strategies we will cover are monitoring and clarifying, fantasy and realism, and cause and effect.

The vocabulary words for the week are: accident, attention, audience, commands, officer, and safety.

The phonic lessons will cover the r-controlled vowels of ar, or, ore, and the syllables -tion and -ture.

Math

We are working on telling time. They are doing pretty good but keep practicing at home. They especially need to review the time before the hour...20 minutes before 11. They get 10:40 but have a harder time doing it the other way.

100 Day

In honor of being in school for 100 days each classroom is collecting at least 100 cans of food for the local food pantry. Please send in any donations by next Wednesday which is our 100th day of school....can you believe it!

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is a week from Tuesday. The children can bring in cards for their friends, however, they cannot bring in candy treats. This is a school wide practice so your cooperation is appreciated. The children will have treats at the party.

Snowflake Ball

The Snowflake Ball will be on Saturday, February 25th. Be sure and send in your registration if you want to attend. It is always great fun!

Student of the Week

Our special student was Ashanti. She has two sisters and one brother. A few of her favorite things are the color blue, cats, cheese pizza, Junie B. Jones books and soccer. At school Ashanti likes reading and gym. At home she likes to watch movies. When she grows up, Ashanti would like to be a doctor.

Week of January 30th, 2012

2012-01-24T08:04:00.000-08:00

Recess

Please remember that we will be going outside if weather permits. Since this changes on a daily basis, the children need to come dressed appropriately in case we do go out. They should come with hats, gloves, and boots. Snow pants are also needed if there is snow on the ground. Thank you for your support and cooperation.

Math

We finished working with money. Our next chapter is about telling time. We also completed the timed test for the math facts. Check to see your child's progress. Many still need to practice this skill.

Student of the Week

Richie was our special student. Richie has one brother. A few of his favorite things are the color blue, dogs, oranges, the book If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, and football. At school Richie likes gym. At home he likes to play hockey. When Richie grows up he wants to be a baseball player.

Week of January 23, 2012

2012-01-18T13:07:00.000-08:00

Reading

We will have our third Writer's Workshop on persuasive writing. Your child will have to see how persuasive he or she can be in convincing someone they need a special gift or vacation. They will need to organize details around this topic and proceed to write a paragraph to persuade you or someone else to get them what they want.

Math

We continue to work on money. We will count, compare, exchange, exchange, add and subtract with money. Any practice at home can only help.

Early Dismissal

Wednesday, January 25th is Early Dismissal. Your child will get on the bus at noon.

Student of the Week

Our special student was Paolo. Paolo has one little brother. A few of his favorite thins are the colors blue and yellow, wolves, oranges, the book The Yellow Bus and basketball. At school Paolo likes to read. At home he likes to play with his little brother. Paolo can speak another language and he is good at karate. When he grows up, Paolo would like to be an architect.

Olive Garden Lunch

Our lunch was delicious! We were happy to have Mrs. O'Leary and Kayla join us since the money raised by the children was for research in Leukemia and Lymphoma which is a cause near and dear to them.

Week of January 17th, 2012

2012-01-10T08:26:00.000-08:00

Monday there is no school in honor of Martin Luther King

Reading

Our story for the week whill be Big Bushy Mustache. This is a story about a young boy who gets a part in the school play. His excitement over being allowed to wear the special mustache leads to an interesting outcome.

Vocabulary words for the week are; bushy, costume, disguise, handsome, mirror, and mustache.

The phonics skills we will cover are the vowel pairs ow, ou and suffixes -ly and -ful

In grammar we will continue to work on plurals.

The comprehension strategies we will cover are problem solving, predicting, and inferring.

A note about the spelling homework. The new edition of the blue sheet will be alternated with the old for the remainder of the year. Some weeks your child will have the original one and some the dictionary version.

MAP Testing

The children did well. I am not sure when the results will be sent home.

Lunch from Olive Garden

We will be having our Olive Garden lunch on Thursday, January, 19th. Please send your child with a drink or milk money. Also, send your child with a lunch if you do not think he/she will eat the lunch which will consist of pasta, marinara sauce, salad and breadsticks.

Student of the Week

Our special student was Katie. Katie has one sister and one brother. A few of her favorite things are the color purple, puppies, talapia, the book Daisy's First Day, and shooting with her brother. At school Katie likes art and gym. At home she likes building forts with her sister and brother. When Katie grows up she want to be a vet.

Week of January 9th, 2012

2012-01-04T08:29:00.000-08:00

Reading

Our story is Jamaica Louise James. It is about a girl who makes her community a happier place by decorating the subway with her art work.

High frequency words are: believe, lady, and whole.

Phonics will cover the vowel pairs ee, ea, and the syllable -tion and -ture.

The Grammar lessons will cover nouns that have a different spelling when they are plurals.

Math

We completed our short chapter on probability and will begin money on Monday. The children need the coins I requested if you have not already sent them to school.

MAP Tests

The children will take the MAP tests this week. Please make sure they have an extra nutritious breakfast on Tuesday and a hearty lunch on Wednesday.

Olive Garden Lunch

Since our class collected the most "Pennies for Pasta" we will be receiving a lunch from Olive Garden Restaurant. I do not have the date yet but as soon as I know I will send a note home.

Student of the Week

Our special student was Cassie. Cassie has two older sisters, one at Lakeview and one at Prairieview. A few of Her favorite things are the color purple, butterflies, watermelon, Junie B. Jones books, and softball (she is a pitcher). At school Cassie likes recess, art, music, and gym. At home she likes to swim, and play the wii, and Ipod. When she grows up Cassie wants to be an art teacher or hair dresser.

Week of January 3rd, 2012

2011-12-13T08:14:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays!

May the weeks ahead be filled with happy times centered around family and friends.

Reading

We will be reading A Visit to the Fire Station. This continues our theme of neighborhoods. It is about a group of children who visit the firehouse in order to learn about how firefighters do their jobs.

The comprehension skills we will work on include, topic, main idea, and supporting details.

The comprehension strategy is questioning.

In phonics we will review vowel pairs ai, and ay and compound words.

The vocabulary words are: chief, emergencies, firefighters, dispatch, fire engine, and gear.

Math

We continue with data, graphs and probability.

We did not take a math timed fact test in December. Remember to keep practicing so they are ready for the January test.

Science

The owl presentation by the Willowbrook Wildlife naturalists was outstanding! What a great opportunity to see owls up close. Thank you PTO for providing the money for this activity.

Holiday Customs Reports

The children did such a good job on their oral reports. Thank you for your support with this assignment. This is the first of many times in their lives that they will have to do such a thing. They are off to a good start as both presentors and audience members.

Fairview Village

The caroling at Fairview Village was very nice. The children behaved very well and did a wonderful entertaining the residents. You should be proud of them. I know I am!

Holiday Party

The classroom party was so nice. The children truly enjoyed it. Thank you again to our room mom, Mrs. Topp and to the moms who either donated items or helped at the party: Mrs. Wagner, Mrs. Gasmen, Mrs. Scheck, Mrs. Nowak, Mrs. Majchrzak, and Mrs. Falotico.

I will enjoy picking out items for the class at Michael's over the break. Thank you for such a useful classroom gift. This is a "crafty" little group so they are always busy making things during indoor recess. Also, thank you for my personal gifts. It was very thoughtful of everyone.

Student of the Week

Our special student was Tanner. Tanner has one sister, Savannah. A few of Tanners's favorite things are the color red, cows, soup, Magic Tree House books, and football. At school he likes recess best. At home he likes to read. Tanner also know all there is to know about tornadoes! When he grow up he wants to be a Backgammon winner.

Ide Movie Night

Mark your calendars for the first Movie Night of the year on Friday, January 6th, 2012.

Week of December 12th, 2011

2011-12-05T10:47:00.000-08:00

Holidays Around the World and Holiday Customs Oral Reports

We will be learning about holidays in other countries. Also, the children will be giving their oral reports about a special holiday tradition in their family.
There will be no spelling words or spelling test this week.

Science

During this past week the children had the opportunity to examine owl pellets. This was a very exciting, interesting and educational experience! I am sure they came home and told you all about it. This coming Wednesday our class will attend a presentation about owls given by the Willowbrook Wildlife Center. They will see two owls, a Barred Owl and a Screech Owl. This should be a great culminating event for our study of owls. Be sure to ask them about it. This event was paid for by The Elizabeth Ide PTO. We appreciate their support!

Math

We are back to working on our math flash cards here at school. I hope you are doing the same at home. We have finished Chapter 8, they brought the test home on Friday. We began Chapter 9 on Friday. In this chapter we will cover graphs and data.

Student of the Week

Our special student was Delaney. Delaney has one brother in fourth grade. A few of her favorite things are the color yellow, dogs, watermelon, the book Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy, and soft ball. At school Delaney likes math and gym. At home she enjoys doing projects. Delaney can swim, play soft ball and do gymnastics. When Delaney grows up she wants to be a clothes designer.

Christmas Caroling

The second grade children will be going to Fairview Village in Downers Grove on Thursday, December 15th to entertain the residents and give them holiday cards. Due to the time we need to be at the village the children will have to eat in the classroom when we return to school. Please send your child with a sack lunch that day since we will not be able to participate in the school hot lunch program.

Christmas Party

Our class Christmas party will be on Friday, December 16th.

Our class was the winner of the "Pennies for Pasta" to benefit Leukemia. We collected $391.88. Thank you all for your generosity. The children are very proud of themselves and looking forward to our lunch which will be arranged later.

Week of December 5th, 2011

2011-11-29T14:12:00.000-08:00

Welcome to December!

Reading Log Reward

Wednesday, Dec. 7th will be 'Pajama Day' for those who turned in their reading logs for November. The children may wear their pajamas to school but must wear shoes. It is OK to bring their slippers but they must have shoes for gym and recess.
The December logs are not due until we return from Winter Break. They are expected to read over the holiday.

Reading

We are beginning a new theme, Around Town. In this theme, we will read about different kinds of neighborhoods. Our first story is called China Town.

This story is about a boy who lives in Chinatown with his parents and grandmother. He tells about the walks he takes through Chinatown each day with his grandmother.

The comprehension strategy we will work on is summarizing.

The comprehension skill is making judgements.

The grammar lessons will focus on naming words (common nouns).

The phonics lessons will review consonant digraphs th, wh, sh, ch, and word endings -er, and -est.

The vocabulary words are: apartment, delivery, market, handcarts, and celebrations.

The high frequency words are: during, head, lion, and winter.

Math

All of you should have seen the results of their latest timed fact tests in addition and subtraction. As I told many of you at your conference, the children need to continue to practice their facts. There are still many of them using their fingers or the number line on their desks. The facts should be automatic so keep using those flash cards or the computer to review.

We will finish Chapter 8 during the week and have the Chapter Test and Cumulative Review. Chapter 9 covers data and graphs.

Holiday Customs

On Thursday the children brought home the instructions for an assignment they need to complete at home. I am asking them to give a 3-5 minute oral presentation on a special holiday custom of your family. This can be anything your family does each year during the holiday season. I am hoping some old family traditions will be covered to help the children understand that each family is different and has their own special way of celebrating the holidays. If you have any questions regarding this assignment, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Holidays Around the World

The week of December 12th we will not have our normal reading group in order to celebrate customs in other countries around the world. The children will move from classroom to classroom in second grade and learn about how different countries celebrate the holiday. I will start them out with China, Mrs. Walega will teach them about Polish customs, Mrs. Oliver will cover Sweden, Mrs. Schultz will talk about Christmas in Mexican and Mrs. Onorato will explain Hanukkah to them.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

It was very nice meeting with all of you last week. I hope your questions were answered. Remember, I am always available if you have any questions or concerns. Generally, I will not contact you unless I have a concern...so I guess '"No news is good news".

Student of the Week

Jack was our special student. Jack has one brother and two sisters. A few of his favorite things are the color yellow, dogs, gumbo, Harry Potter, and soccer.

at school he likes playing with his friends. At home he likes playing with his neighbors. When Jack grows up, first he want to be a movie producer, then he wants to be a biologist.

Week of November 21st, and 28th, 2011

2011-11-16T09:34:00.000-08:00

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families.

Reading

We will read two selections about owls. Owl Moon is a realistic fiction story about a little girl and her father who look for owls in the woods on a cold winter night. Our other story is entitled Owls. This is a nonfiction book about what owls look like, where they live, and how they hunt for food.

The comprehension strategies we will discuss are predicting, inferring, questioning, monitoring, clarifying, comparing, and contrasting.

In phonics we will emphasize long vowels o, u, and e.

Our vocabulary words are: clearing, echo, meadow, owling, pumped, shadows, threading, rarely, active, blend, outlined, and curved.

The grammar lessons will focus on telling sentences and questions.

To help the children better understand owls we will be doing an owl unit in science. We will be reading books about owls and looking at owl pellets. The unit will conclude with a visit from a naturalist from Willowbrook Wildlife Center who will bring an owl to school for the children to see up close and personal.

Math

We are continueing to work on regrouping with subtraction. Please keep practicing math facts at home. They really need to know their facts to be able to add and subtraction quickly.

Student of the Week

Our special student was Chrissa. She has one brother. A few of Chrissa's favorite things are the color blue, horses, brownies, Junie B. Jones books, and tennis. At school Chrissa likes math and gym. At home she likes to color and read. When Chrissa grows up she wants to be an eye doctor.

Report Cards

Report cards will be sent home in your child's folder on Tuesday, November 29th. Please send the envelope back to school, the report card is for you to keep.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Conferences are scheduled for the week of November 28th. Please be on time for your scheduled conference. If you are unable to make your scheduled time, please notify the office.

There is no school on Friday, December 2nd.

Science

We are continueing to observe our worms and the wormbin. The worms are looking much healthier now that they are in their new home.

Week of November 14th, 2011

2011-11-08T13:46:00.000-08:00

Reading

Our story for the week is Around the Pond: Who's Been Here? This is a story about two children, Cammy and William who go for a walk around the pond in search of blueberries to bring home to their mother who has promised to make a pie. On their walk the children see animal footprints, numerous animals, shells and even a beaver dam. The illustrations are beautiful! The children will love this story.

The comprehension strategy of monitoring and clarifying will be stressed.

The comprehension skills to be learned are categorizing and classifying.

The phonics skills will be double consonants as in the words class, dress, puppet, and yellow. We will also work on the vowel pattern of VCV as in the words pilot, finish, and closet.

Our vocabulary words are: bank, edge, path, crater, moss, and shallow.

Our grammar lessons will work on when to use an exclamation point.

Math

The Chapter 6 test went home in their folder on Thursday. In Chapter 7 we will be exploring 2-digit subtraction. We will use base-ten blocks to demonstrate and learn regrouping for subtraction.

Assembly

The children will attend an assemble on Wednesday entitled Kids on the Block. In this assembly they will learn about the various handicaps some children have to deal with each day. This is an excellent program that uses puppets to teach the children about a very special issue.

Science

We have been learning about earthworms in science. The children have observed worms on their desks. They can locate the saddle, segments, bristles, head and tail on a worm. Some of the children were able to see the worm's mouth. All of the children will be seeing egg sacs. We put together a wormbin and will keep the worms in our room until spring. The children will feed the worms the left overs from their snacks such as banana peels, apple cores, a grape or two, and strawberry tops. Worms eat any organic material.

Social Studies

We have just completed a unit on map skills in Social Studies. As part of the assessment process the children had to make their own "treasure map". They had to draw a map and write direction to a specific spot where something special would be found. I will be grading these and sending them home. There are some beautiful maps in the group!

Student of the Week

Our special student was Patrick. Patrick has two older brothers. A few of Patrick's favorite things are the color black, dogs, French Fries, the book Diary of a Whimpy Kid, and basketball. At school Patrick likes gym. At home he likes to play video games. When Patrick grows up he would like to create video games.

Week of November 7th, 2011

2011-10-31T10:49:00.000-07:00

The class Halloween party was a huge success! The children had a great time. Thank you to all those who contributed items and to Mrs. Topp, Mrs. Bastuga, Mrs. Chlada, and Mrs. Madiar who helped at the party.

Mathathon

Mrs. Bouton sent home information about the St. Jude Mathathon. Your child's participation is voluntary.

Pledge

Our last four children to do the pledge were Chrissa, Alexa, Christopher and Jack. They did a great job! Our room will have the chance to say the pledge again later in the year.

Reading

In reading we will continue with Exploring Parks with Ranger Dockett. There will be no spelling words or spelling homework.

Math

We are continuing to work on regrouping with double digit addition. Our chapter test will be on Tuesday and we will begin regrouping with subtraction problems on Wednesday.

Conference Notes

Your conference time was sent home with your child Friday. Please fill out the bottom portion and return it to school asap. Thank you!

Veterans Day

Friday, November 11th is Veterans Day. There will be no school.

Student of the Week

Lauren was the special student. She has one brother and one sister. A few of Lauren's favorite things are the color pink, bunnies, pasta, the book Paige the Christmas Play Fairy, and dancing. At school Lauren likes to read. At home she likes to draw and play volleyball. when Lauren grows up she wants to be a teacher.

Coats

Tis the time to watch the weather! Some days are cold some are not, so please send your child with the appropriate outdoor apparel. We do go out if it is dry so we want them to be warm enough.

Week of October 31st, 2011

2011-10-24T14:30:00.000-07:00

November is Here!

Halloween Party

Monday is the big day!!!
Parade is at 1:40 and the classroom parties start at 2:00.

Reading

We will read the story Exploring Parks with Ranger Dockett. Ranger Dockett is an urban park ranger who teaches people about exploring nature in a city park.

The phonics lessons will emphasize consonant clusters with r, l, and s. We will learn about the two sounds for c. We will also review the long vowel sounds of o, u, and e.

The vocabulary words for the week are: exploring, habitat, protect, ranger, tours, and urban.

Our grammar lessons will focus on command sentences.

Descriptive Stories

The children wrote stories describing their Halloween costumes. As I mentioned before, we will focus on the traits of good writing this year. In writing descriptive stories the children were encouraged to think about word choice. When we explore word choice in the classroom, we focus on the parts of speech that writers use to convey meaning. It's about selecting words carefully to craft fluent sentences and create a lasting image in the reader's mind.
The stories were very good.

Reading Logs

The October logs are due Tuesday, November 1st. The children will receive their November logs at that time. The prize the children worked for in October was lunch in the room with a movie.

Pledge

Our pledge people this week were, Anabella, Nora, Patrick, Tom, Ashanti, Gretchen, Keaton, Nathan, Paolo, and Jenna. They did an awesome job!

Math

The Chapter 5 test was Friday. We will begin Chapter 6 on Monday. In Chapter 6 will continue to work on two digit addition with regrouping.
We also took the timed fact tests during the week, looks like we need to get back to practicing.

Student of the Week

Nathan was our special student this week. Nathan has one older sister. A few of Nathan's favorite things are the color orange, dolphins, bananas, I Spy books and football. At school he likes gym best and at home he likes to play. Nathan has a black belt in karate. When he grows up he would like to be a video game designer.

Elizabeth Ide Movie Night

Ide movie night is November 4th.

Week of October 24th, 2011

2011-10-18T08:06:00.000-07:00

Reading/Writing Workshop

In place of a story we will again be doing a reading/writing workshop. Our focus will be descriptive writing. Descriptive writing includes the traits of Word Choice, Convention, and Presentation. Word Choice is working on words to use so that the reader can picture what is being described. Convention and Presentation will make it easier for others to read what is written. These two traits include using correct punctuation, capitalization, and clear, neat handwriting. We will be stressing the skills of prewriting, drafting, proofreading, and publishing. The children will be describing thier Halloween costumes.
It would be very helpful to your child if you talked to them about their Halloween costumes. Help them describe it orally, reminding them to include details.

There will be a spelling list, spelling homework and a spelling test this week.

Math

We will continue to work on regrouping. We use a lot of hands on manipulatives in the beginning to help the children "see" what is happening when we regroup or carry as it was called in the past.
We will have our third timed fact tests this week.

The Pledge to the Flag

It is our turn to say the pledge over the public address system. The children go down in pairs and say the Pledge to the Flag and the Positive Behavior Pledge. This week the following children did an outstanding job representing our class: Cassie, Tanner, Jessica, Delaney, Katie, Lauren, Ashley, Ysabel, Xander, and Richie.

Student of the Week

Gretchen was our special student this week. Gretchen has one sister and one brother. A few of her favorite things are the color black, gorillas, chicken and sushi, the book Junie B. and Mallory,and soccer. At school she likes math and reading. At home she likes to play with her sister. She also likes Irish dancing. When Gretchen grows up she wants to be a doctor.

Classroom Halloween Party

Our Halloween party is scheduled for Monday, October 31st. The children's parade will begin at 1:40 outside the school (weather permitting). Everyone is invited to come and watch. Our classroom party will start at 2:00 p.m. Students should bring their costumes to school in a bag. They will put them on after lunch. Please make sure your child is able to put on his/her own costume with relative ease. No make-up will be applied at school and no toy weapons of any kind are allowed.

Second Grade Musical

The second grade music program, Squirm, is Monday, October 24th, at 7:00 p.m. in the Lakeview gym. Children need to meet in the new gym at Lakeview by 6:45 p.m. Some children have a specific role so need to dress like their character. The rest need to dress like a bug or wear a black and orange combination of shirt and pants. No doubt this show will be great as are all of Ms. Wyse's productions!

Early Dismissal

Thursday, October 27th is an early dismissal day. The children will be released at noon.

Week of October 17th, 2011

2011-10-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

Reading

We will begin Theme 2 in our reading series: Nature Walk. Our story is a fictional story called Henry and Mudge and the Starry Night. The story is about a boy named Henry who goes camping with his parents and his dog Mudge. Each one of them enjoys camping, but not for the same reasons.

The comprehension strategies of comparing and contrasting will be review.

In phonics the lessons will emphasize the long vowel o, u, and e and the sounds for the letter g.

The vocabulary words are: backpack, campfire, camping, hike, lanterns, and tent.

The grammar lessons will focus on telling sentences and questions.

Math

The Chapter 4 test will be on Monday. In Chapter 5 we will be working on double digit addition with the concept of regrouping being introduced. This is an important skill for them to master. Please be sure to continue to review their daily math sheets at home and supervise their homework. If you are not sure about something please let me know. They are learning regrouping (carrying) differently from how you may have learned it. Let me know if I need to cover something again. A note on the homework sheet is a good way to let me know about any confusion. Thanks for your cooperation:)

Social Studies

We are continueing to work on basic map skills. So far the children have learned about symbols, a map key, compass rose, directions, scale, and grids.

Apple Week

Our study of apples was great. We did many fun activities. I hope the children came home and talked about some of them.

Fire Safety Assembly

On Wednesday, October 13th, Lt Tabiz from the Darien-Woodridge Fire Department reviewed fire safety with the children. As usual he did a great job educating and entertaining the children.

Musical

Squirm is only a week away. I hope to see all of you on the 24th.

Elizabeth Ide's Spooky Halloween Party

The PTO is hosting a Halloween party at Ide on Friday, October 21st at 6:30. The cost is $6.00 per family and is due by October 17th. A flyer was sent home with your child on Thursday.

Week of October 10th, 2011

2011-10-06T07:54:00.000-07:00

Apple Week

Since next week is a short week we will not be having our regular reading groups. Instead we will be doing a number of activities centered around apples. We sent a note home asking you to provide two apples from home. Variety in color and type would be very helpful.
We will be discussing the numerous varieties of apples, making applesauce (with apples as the ONLY ingredient), making dehydrated apples, learning about Johnny Appleseed, doing an art project or two, reading books and doing various language arts activities. We will be giving the children a spelling list of apple related words but there will be no blue homework sheet and no spelling test.

Squirm

The second grade musical will be on October 24th at 7:00 pm in the Lakeview gym. It sounds very good so mark your calendars, you don't want to miss it! Miss Wyse always does a great job preparing the children so you won't be disappointed. She sent a note home regarding costumes. If you did not receive one or misplaced yours, please let me know and I will see that you get another.

There will be no school on Monday, October 10th for Columbus Day and Tuesday, October 11th due to a Teacher's Institute Day. Enjoy the very long weekend!

Star of the Week

Our special student this week was Christopher. Christopher has two brothers, one older and one younger. A few of his favorite things are the color green, alligators, pizza, baseball, and the book Squish Super Amoeba. At school Christopher likes to go to gym and recess. At home he likes playing with his brothers and going to the park. Christopher says he is good at math, baseball, basketball and soccer. When he grows up he would like to be a baseball player.

Halloween Party

The class Halloween party will be on Monday, October 31st.

Week of October 3, 2011

2011-09-29T11:05:00.000-07:00

Reading

We will be reading two stories. Our stories will be used to compare fantasy and nonfiction. Our fantasy story is about two hippos: George and Martha, Round and Round by James Marshall. The nonfiction selection is from the magazine Ranger Rick, titled Hippos.

The comprehension strategy of connecting and comparing will be taught.

The phonic lessons will review all the short vowel sounds, long 'a' and the VCCV pattern.

The grammar lessons will review naming and action parts of sentences.

The vocabulary words for the week are; herd, mammal, moisture, nostrils, and relatives.

Math

We are continuing to work on place value. We will begin Chapter 4 on Monday. In this chapter we will be working on number concepts in addition to place value. Some of the terms that will be introduced are: ordinal numbers, greater than, less than, greatest, least, even, odd, and rounding.

Student of the Week

Our special student this week was Anabella. Anabella has one brother. A few of her favorite things are the color blue, dogs, pizza, cheer leading, and the book Polly the Party Fun Fairy. At school Bella likes math and art. At home she likes to draw, ride her bike and write stories. She also must like smiling because she is always doing it! When she grows up Anabella wants to be a teacher.

Reading Logs

What a group! No one turned in their reading log before the end of the month and some asked for extra sheets. I am impressed. The logs are due Monday and I will give them the October sheet that day also. Anyone who turns in their reading log will get an extra recess with Mrs. Onorato's class joining us. Thank you for your cooperation with the logs.
These logs count for the other reading incentive programs we do throughout the year, Book It, the Kane County Cougar tickets and for the Great America tickets. Book It begins in October and ends in March, the Cougar tickets are in May and the Great America tickets are given at the end of the year.

Week of September 26th, 2011

2011-09-22T12:51:00.000-07:00

Reading

Our story for the week is Mrs. Brown Went to Town. As the title suggests, it is about a lady who leaves the farm for a trip into town. It is a rhyming story that tells about farm animals moving into Mrs. Brown's house in her absence. As you can imagine this causes a few problems.

The comprehension strategies to be covered are predicting and inferring.

In our grammar lessons we will be talking about action parts of sentences.

Our vocabulary words are: different, floor, letter, move, poor, and word.

In phonics we will work on the long a and long i vowels using the CVCe pattern.

We began our reading groups this week. I believe everyone enjoyed the small groups. Mrs. Finn is a great asset to our room.

Math

The children took the chapter 2 test and did well. In Chapter 3 we will be working on place value and double digit addition and subtraction. Please keep practicing the math facts and home. We will have the second timed fact tests this week.

Homework

Great job on every ones part in completing the homework. Also, I appreciate the fact that all the reading bags came back. Thank you all for your cooperation.

Ide Book Fair

Thank you for the donation of books to our classroom. The following children and their families added great books for us to enjoy: Bella, Jack, Tanner, Chrissa, Nora, Lauren, Jessica, Christopher, Gretchen, and Patrick.

Star of the Week

Keaton was our special person last week. Keaton has one brother and one sister. Some of Keaton's favorite things are the color orange, cats, chocolate, Skippy Jon Jones books and football. At school he likes playing basketball in gym and playing outside at recess. Keaton wants to be a baseball player when he grows up.

Early Dismissal

Friday, September 30th is early dismissal. The children will get on the bus at noon.

Picture Day

Thursday, September 29th is picture day at Ide. Your child brought home an order form. Everyone will have their picture taken for the class composite but order a package is your choice.

District 66 Magazine Drive

We have two "Turn In" days next week, Tuesday and Thursday.

Week of September 19th, 2011

2011-09-12T13:57:00.000-07:00

Reading

Our story will be Julius, a story about a pig that comes to live with a little girl and her family.
We will discuss the comprehension strategies of Fantasy vs. Realism.
Our phonics lessons will emphasise the short vowels, o, u, and e and the VCCV pattern in words.
The vocabulary words for the week are: brought, reason, special, surprise.
The grammar lessons will focus on synonyms and naming parts of a sentence.

Mrs. Finn will be coming into our room beginning Monday. She and I will be doing reading groups from 1:15 to 2:15, Monday through Thursday.

Math

We are continuing to work on strategies for subtracting.

Star of the Week

Our special student this week was Ashley. Ashley has one brother. Her favorite colors are cold and silver. She likes horses, nachos, swimming, music, math, gym, art and spelling. Her favorite books are the Magic Tree House series. When Ashley grows up she wants to be a spy.

Social Studies

We are learning about maps and the globe in social studies.

Writing

The children worked on their stories all week. It was great that they all came with an idea about what to write about. Thank you for your help with this assignment. The stories will hang in the room for everyone to see. They should all be proud of their hard work.

Ide Book Fair

The Book Fair was a great success. Thank you all who were able to come and support this very important fund raiser.

Magazine Drive

The first Magazine "Turn in Day" is scheduled for Tuesday, September 20th. Your support is appreciated.

Week of September 12th, 2011

2011-09-08T06:50:00.000-07:00

Paragraph Writing

This past week we have been reading books about authors and how they write. We have gone over the seven traits of good writing in preparation for the paragraphs the children will be asked to write next week. Over the weekend you might want to discuss a topic your child could write about next week. They will be writing a personal narrative. Their story should be about a personal experience such as a vacation, a pet, a friend, or a family event. Discuss ideas only, the paper will be written in class.
There will be a spelling test so watch for the list to come home on Monday along with the blue homework sheet.

Math

We finished our first chapter in math and had the chapter test on Friday. We will begin Chapter 2 on Monday. In this chapter we will use various strategies to reinforce subtraction. Vocabulary words the children will be using are: subtract, take away, compare, count back, difference, fact family and missing addend. We have been practicing math facts with our flash cards. Please continue to do the same at home.

Curriculum Night

It was a pleasure seeing many of you Thursday night. I hope most of your questions were answered. Remember, it is easy to e-mail me if there is something you need clarified. I hope the expectations for second grade are clearer now. Checking their green folders and returning them each day along with the assignment notebook will help keep your child organized.
I am looking forward to working with you and your child to make this a successful year.
Thank you to those of you who were able to sign up for the class parties either to help or send food. The room parents will be contacting everyone to ask for help with some of the items we still need.

Elizabeth Ide Book Fair

The PTO Book Fair will be Thursday, September 15th in the Ide gym. Please show your school support by attending. Our PTO is instrumental in doing many wonderful things to benefit the children at Elizabeth Ide.

Magazine Drive

Another important fund raiser for the district is the magazine drive. The "kick-off" for this activity will be Monday, September 12th. Any support you give is appreciated.

Week of September 6th, 2011

2011-09-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

Curriculum Night

Thursday, September 8th is Curriculum Night. Please meet in the Elizabeth Ide gym at 7:00 p.m. Mrs. Hansen will talk briefly and then you will be dismissed to my classroom. I will go over the behavior plan, our daily schedule, and the second grade curriculum. I will also answer any of your general questions. There will be no time for individual conferences that night, however, you can always contact me privately via e-mail or phone concerning your child. CURRICULUM NIGHT IS FOR PARENTS ONLY. PLEASE ALLOW YOUR CHILDREN TO REMAIN AT HOME.

Spelling

We had our first spelling test on Friday. The children did well. Hopefully, you will have a better understanding of our spelling procedure after hearing more about it at Curriculum Night.
I HOPE TO SEE MOST OF YOU ON THURSDAY NIGHT. AGAIN, PLEASE REMEMBER THIS NIGHT IS FOR PARENTS ONLY.

Math

We have been reviewing skills from last year and will continue to do so in the remainder of chapter 1. Please start now to practice the addition and subtraction facts at home.

Snack

We have snack each morning. Please remember to send your child with a HEALTHY snack. Your cooperation is appreciated.

Week of May 31st, 2011

2011-05-26T08:15:00.000-07:00

DuPage Children's Museum

Our trip to the museum is all set for Tuesday, May 31st. We will leave school shortly after the children arrive and return by approximately 1:00 p.m. We will be participating in a learning lab and exploration of the museum. The GeoSpace learning lab will have the children construct their own geo-worlds using geometric shapes and solids. Each child will come home with their geospace creation. They will spend 1 1/2 hours in the leaning lab and 1 1/2 hours in the museum. There is no need to send a snack that day since we will not have the opportunity to eat it.

Prairieview Visit

Meeting their pen pals and visiting Prairieview was a fun experience for the children. The third graders were very gracious. They did a good job welcoming our children to their building. It is hard to believe that their days at Ide are almost over.

Bubble Guy

The children will have an assembly on Wednesday, June 1st. The assembly centers around bubbles. In the past the children have really enjoyed seeing all the amazing things the presenter can do with bubbles. I am sure the children will love it!

Elizabeth Ide Picnic

Friday, June 3rd is the day planned for outdoor activities and lunch at Ide. Lunch will be pizza so remember if your child does not eat pizza you need to send them a sack lunch.

Box Top Lunch

Since our class brought in the most box tops in second grade they will receive a pizza lunch on Thursday, June 2nd. Again, if your child does not like pizza be sure to send a sack lunch or let them get a hot lunch .

Week of May 23rd, 2011

2011-05-11T07:26:00.000-07:00

Reading

Our last story will be The School Mural.

We will concentrate on the comprehension strategy of problem solving.

The vocabulary words for the week are: event, mural, pride, project, scene, and sketches.

The phonics skills will cover base words with -ed, and -ing endings where we drop the final e.

In grammar we will compare things using adjectives.

Elizabeth Ide Field Day

Our outdoor activity day will be on Friday, June 3rd. Lunch will be pizza. Id your child does not like pizza you will need to send him/her a lunch.

Prairie view Visit

The children will meet their pen pals on Thursday, May 26th. We will go to Prairieview after lunch and spend about an hour and a half visiting and looking around. Can you believe they are heading for third grade!!!

Tickets

Each child that turned in reading logs for 7 of the 9 months possible will get a ticket to Six Flags. Thank you for all of your support at home in completing the logs each month.

Math

We will be taking our last fact test soon. If your child has not completed 100 facts in the 5 minutes provided you have some practicing to do over the summer. Multiplication facts are coming in third grade.

Week of May 9th, 2011

2011-05-03T08:23:00.000-07:00

Enjoy the Day!

Reading

Our story next week is The Art Lesson by Tomie dePaola. Some of the students are already familiar with this story through their study of Tomie dePaola in first grade.

The comprehension strategy is author's viewpoint.

The vocabulary words are: crayon, chalk, copy, powders, smock, practice, ruin, copper, violet, turquoise, and monitor.

In phonics we will review the vowel pairs oo, ew, ue, and ou.

The

grammar lessons will address irregular forms of verbs. We will also discuss identifying whether a group of words is a sentence.

Science

Our class is watching anxiously to see when the butterflies will emerge from their chrysalis'. It should be some time during the upcoming week.

Reading

The prize for the May logs will be a pizza party in our room on June 6th provided by me. I have given each child a log. They must complete it and return it no sooner than June 1st. If they fill up the first sheet they can and should ask for another.

Also, we have won the box top pizza party. That date is to be arranged. Thank you all for your support.

Pen Pal Letters

The children received their letters from their third grade pen pal on Monday. We have been working all week answering the letters. They will be sent to Praireview on Monday. The children will go to Prairieview on June 2nd to meet their pen pals, see the classrooms and play on the playground.

Early Dismissal

Don't forget that Friday, May 13th is early dismissal. The children will be released at noon.

Library Books

All Elizabeth Ide library books are due back on May 20th

Week of May 2nd, 2011

2011-04-25T09:48:00.000-07:00

May is here!

Can you believe it?

Reading

We will be reviewing Theme 5 this week. The stories are More Stories Julian Tells and Slippery Siblings.

We will concentrate on the comprehension strategies of making generalizations, following directions, and making judgements.

The vocabulary words are: advice, curve, instructions, message, travel, cartwheel, sparkled, dashboard, vibrate, bobsled, catchers, steered, facility, provides, course, and straightaways.

In phonics we will review the -ie and -er endings in two syllable words, contractions, base words with -ed, -ing endings, and silent consonants gh, kn, and b.

In our grammar lessons we will talk about present and past tense verbs.

We will be taking the MAPS test this week.

Math

We are comparing and ordering large numbers. This is a short chapter. Our next chapter is 3-digit addition.

Open House/Book Fair

It was so nice to see many of you at our annual Open House and Book Fair. Thank you to those of you who donated money for books for our classroom. We will enjoy reading the books and they will be a great addition to our classroom library.

Caterpillar/Butterflies

Our caterpillars are beginning to form a chrysalis. We will be moving them to the butterfly garden soon. It will take 7 to 10 day for them to change into butterflies.

Week of April 25th, 2011

2011-04-20T08:09:00.000-07:00

Reading

Next week we will be reading the story Thundercake by Patricia Polacco. Ms. Polacco was one of the children's first grade authors so they should remember her stories. This story is a realistic story about a girl who is afraid of thunderstorms.

We will concentrate on the comprehension strategy of sequencing events.

Vocabulary words for the week are: bolt, horizon, lightening, rumbled, thunder, weather, clap, cooed, stammered, crowed, penned, samovar.

Phonics skills will be the -ed and -ing endings and the silent consonants gh, k(n), b.

In grammar lessons we will talk about the verbs is/are and was/were.

In our writing this week we will learn how to write a dialogue.

Science

Our caterpillars have arrived but have not begun to form their chrysalis' yet. We are keeping a journal and measuring their growth. Soon they will begin their 12 day metamorphosis into butterflies. The butterflies we have are called Painted Ladies. The children are very excited about having them in the room.

Elizabeth Ide Open House

Our annual open house and book fair is Thursday, April 28th from 6:30 to 8:00. I hope to see all of you here. The children love this night. They especially enjoy the opportunity to show you all their work. They also like being able to purchase books at the book fair.

Math

We have been learning about place value using three digit numbers. We will have our test this week and then begin comparing and ordering larger numbers.

Week of April 18th, 2011

2011-04-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

The Week Ahead Next week we will continue to work on our animal reports. We will not have a reading lesson or spelling words. The children will share their reports and posters with their classmates. Thursday is early dismissal. The children will be released at noon. Friday there will be no school.

Animal Reports The children have been working very hard on their reports. You will be able to see the results at our Open House on Thursday, April 28th.

Science Sometime this week we should receive our caterpillars. We will be making a journal to record their development. We will also continue to learn about various habitats. Hopefully you are enjoying the poster project. Several have already been turned in.

Open House Be sure to mark your calendars for the annual Open House. Your children have worked hard preparing materials for you to see. We also hope you will support the book fair which directly benefits the children at Ide.

Week of April 11th, 2011

2011-04-07T13:53:00.000-07:00

Expository Writing We will not be reading a story. We will be doing the OLSAT test on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday we will concentrate on expository writing and our animal reports. We will use the information that the students gathered about an animal from the rain forest, ocean or desert and attempt to write a five paragraph essay.

Animal Posters The posters are due on Monday, April 25th. Thank you for your help at home with this project. The posters will be hanging in the hall for Open House. Please make sure that the poster is only 11" x 14" so we have room to hang them all.

Science We will be learning about butterflies. We will discuss life cycle, habitat, self-defense tactics, metamorphosis, and migration. We will also have caterpillars in our room which we hope will turn into butterflies.

Math We are working on fractions in math. On Friday we began math stations. We grouping the children from Mrs. Onorato's class and our class together and doing math activities from 10:00 to 11:00 on Friday mornings from now until the end of the year. There will be 6 stations with and adult at each stations.

Week of April 4th, 2011

2011-03-21T12:56:00.000-07:00

Japan

The children collected $1,141.93 to donate to the people in Japan. The money will be given to the Red Cross and sent to Japan. Thank you all for your generosity.

Reading

When we return from Spring Break our story will be Carousel.

In phonics we will cover the sound of y at the end of longer words. We will also talk about the prefix -un.

Our comprehension strategy will be making judgements.

The vocabulary words will be: angry, fussed, groaned, grumbled, grumpily, promised, frothy, tutu, mane, and trot.

In grammar lessons we will discuss past tense of verbs.

Spring Break

The break begins Friday after school and we return on Monday, April 4th. The children have Tuesday, April 5th off because it is an Institute Day for the teachers. It was scheduled this way because Tuesday is an election day and our building is a polling place. This allows us to avoid having the children present while strangers are walking around the building.

Animal Unit

All of you should have seen the letters regarding the animal unit we will be starting upon our return from Spring Break. Your child has been assigned either a rain forest, ocean or desert habitat. They are to choose an animal found in that habitat to learn about. Please assist your child by helping them research their animal. The paper that was sent home was to help you get started taking notes on important facts about the animal. You can use any paper you want, this was just a suggestion. The children will use the notes they take to put together a 5 paragraph paper on their animal. This paper will be done in school.

After break I will send home information about the poster the children will be required to make. They will make the poster at home. I will give you specific instructions regarding size and content.
The posters and papers will be out for the parents to see at our spring open house.

Math

When we return in April we will begin learning about fractions.

Life Touch Portraits

If you have not returned your child's pictures or the money for the pictures please do so as soon as possible. All children received a packet. I explained to them that they are on their honor to return the pictures if they do not wish to pay for them.

Reading Logs

March logs are not due until April 4th when we return from break. I will give them their April logs at that time.

Week of March 21st, 2011

2011-03-17T07:52:00.000-07:00

Reading

Next week we will be reading Jalapeno Bagels, a story about a boy named Pablo who spends an early morning at his parents' bakery. Pablo needs to decide which bread he will bring to school for International Day. He chooses one that show his Mexican-Jewish-American heritage.

Math

On Tuesday we will have our test on length, perimeter, and area. Our next chapter will cover weight, mass, capacity, and temperature.

Student of the Week

We have gone through all the posters that have been returned. If you have not completed a poster with your child please do so asap so your child can have a turn.

Spring Break

Our break begins Friday, March 25th. We return to school on Monday, April 4th. I hope all of you enjoy the break.

Week of March 14th, 2011

2011-03-09T08:01:00.000-08:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Writing Workshop

We will have a reading/writing workshop that focuses on writing a personal narrative. Your child will choose a topic, write an introduction, beginning, middle, end, and conclusion. Help your child recall something special they did like a big vacation or important event. This will help prepare them for their writing assignment.

Math

We took the chapter test on Friday. We will begin chapter 17 on Monday. In this chapter we will learn about inches, feet, yards, centimeters, meters, perimeter, and area.

Student of the Week

Our special student this week was Kathan. Kathan has two little brothers. Some of Kathan's favorite things are the color blue, Golden Eagles, cheese enchiladas, stories about the Titanic, basketball, recess, and playing with Star Wars legos. He likes watching birds and learning about history. Kathan is a Cub Scout. When he grow us, Kathan would like to be the captain of a ship.

Week of March 7th, 2011

2011-03-02T13:42:00.000-08:00

Reading

Our story in reading next week is Brothers and Sisters. A variety of brothers and sisters will tell us about their families.

In phonics we will cover the -er ending in two syllable words.

Making generalizations will be our comprehension strategy.

The vocabulary words are: newborn, distract, twins, pest, teenage.

Verbs will be discussed in the grammar lessons.

Conferences

It was very nice to see many of you at the conference for your child. Please
remember if you have any concerns about your child you may contact me via e-mail anytime.

Math

We are still working on plane geometric shapes. We will finish the chapter by the end of the week.
As I told many of you during your conference, you need to practice the math facts at home. It is very important that the children know these in preparation for third grade. Also, keep reviewing past skills like telling time and counting money so they don't forget what they learned.

Student of the Week

Our special student this week was Megan. Megan has a twin brother. A few of her favorite things are the color green, dogs, treats, the book Diary of a Wimpy Kid, soccer, recess, playing the wii, and watching TV. Megan says she is good at games , likes to try new things, and is good at remembering. when she grows up Megan would like to be a teacher.

Week of February 28th, 2011

2011-02-24T08:29:00.001-08:00

Reading

We will have our theme review for "Amazing Animals". We will be comparing fiction and non-fiction stories about dinosaurs. Many of the children will remember the Tomie dePaola selection from last year when he was one of the authors of the month.

The comprehension strategy we will focus on is questioning.

Our vocabulary words are: disaster, earthquake, erupting, lava, pitch, volcano, allergic, rumbling.

The phonics skills will cover words with nd, nt, mp, ng, and nk. We will review vowel pairs oa and ow.

The grammar lessons will focus on singular possessive nouns and plural possessive nouns.

Report Cards

Report cards will be sent home on Tuesday. For those of you who have conferences scheduled for Monday evening you will be able to see your child's grades at the time of your conference.

Conferences

I will see most of you on either Monday or Wednesday evening. Please do your best to be on time. I am schedule every 15 minutes so we will have to stay on schedule.

There is no school on Friday, March 4th or Monday, March 7th. Enjoy the extra long weekend. Hopefully we will have some warmer weather to allow the kids to get out and play.

Math

We will take the chapter test on chapter 14 on Monday. In chapter 15 we will work on plane figures and spatial sense.

Student of the Week

Paulina was our special student. A few of her favorite things are the color pink, puppies, apples, pasta, the book Green Eggs and Ham, swimming, reading, math, homework, cleaning and playing. Paulina can speak polish and play the piano. She shows she is a friend by being friendly and fair. When Paulina grows up she wants to be an actress. Paulina gave each of her friends a packet of flower seeds to plant this spring.

Week of February 21st, 2011

2011-02-14T09:51:00.000-08:00

Reading

We will be reading The Great Ball Game. In this story two groups agree to play a ball game to end a quarrel. Both groups agree that the winners may set a penalty that the losers must accept.

The comprehension strategy we will work on is summarizing.

The comprehension skill is cause and effect.

The vocabulary words are: accept, advantage, argument, penalty, quarrel.

The grammar lessons will focus on possessive nouns and improving writing.

In phonics we will work on vowel pairs oa, and ow.

Math

Our test for chapter 13 was Friday and we also began chapter 14. In chapter 14 we will be working on geometric shapes.

Conference Notes

Conference notes were sent home Friday in their green folders. Please complete your portion and return as soon as possible.

Student of the Week

Danny M. was our special student. Danny has 3 sisters and 2 brothers. Some of Danny's favorite things are the colors blue, red, and gold, dogs, mac and cheese, baseball, soccer, monopoly and recess. Danny shows people he cares by being kind. when Danny grows up he want to be a doctor.

Thank you, Mrs. Wisdon, Mrs. Harmon and Mrs. Kucxynski for organizing the Valentine's Day party. Also, thanks to all who sent treats and supplies. The children had a great time!

Week of February 14th, 2011

2011-02-10T07:23:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day

Have a Heart...Lend a Can

We collected 75 cans to be donated to theWoodridge Community Pantry. Thank you for your generous donations!

Reading

we will be reading a nonfiction story that examines the physical characteristics, life cycle and natural habitat of various types of ants.

The comprehension strategies we will concentrate on will be organizing and questioning.

The vocabulary words are antennae, cocoons, colonies, fungus, larvae, tunnels, parasol, and aphids.

Phonics skills will cover words with nd, nt, mp, ng, and nk. We will also look at adding endings to nouns (-s, -es, -ies).

Math

We are working on telling time and measuring the passing of time. It is really important for you to work on this skill at home. In first grade they learned to recognize the hour and half hour. We are now doing quarter hours, time before the hour, time after the hour, elapsed time and time relationships. They need this skill for life. Please review their classwork and homework and review at home.

Abraham Lincoln

Our class has learned a gr4eat deal about our 16th president. Ask them some questions, I bet they can tell you about him. We will share our knowledge with Mrs. Onorato's children this week. In turn they will amaze us with everything they know about George Washington.

Valentine's Day Party

Our party will be Monday, February 14th at 2:00 pm. Remember the school rule is no treats from home. The children will get treats provided by the room moms.

Week of February 7th, 2011

2011-02-04T07:10:00.000-08:00

President's Day

During the month of February we celebrate President's Day to honor all our presidents past and present. Since George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were born in February they tend to be the focus of our month. In keeping with that tradition and to familiarize our children with these two men who were so influential in our countries history, Mrs. Onorato and I have planned a joint activity. Mrs. Onorato's class will research George Washington and "teach" our class about him. Our class will become experts on Abraham Lincoln and impart our knowledge on the students in Mrs. Onorato's class. Feel free to visit your own library to check out a biography on Mr. Lincoln (and George Washington, if you'd like) and read it with your child at home.

Reading/Writing Workshop

In reading we will focus on biographies. The children will work on a timeline after reading a biography of a famous person.

Math

Counting money and making change has been our focus the last few weeks. Most of the children have done well on counting a pile of change. Now they really need to work on making change. This is not as easy for them and they need to review this very important skill at home to master it.

Student of the Week

A.J. was our special student last week and we will let him continue this week since we missed two days. A.J. has one older sister in 5th grade. A few of A.J.'s favorite things are the color black, dogs, lemon chicken, Geronimo Stilton, wrestling, and sports in general. When A.J. grows up he would like to be an astronaut.

Have a Heart...Lend a Can

We are collecting cans for the Woodridge Community Pantry. Since 100th day is on February 9th we are trying to collect at least 100 cans in each room. Currently we have 18 items.

Week of January 31st, 2011

2011-01-28T00:25:00.000-08:00

Reading

We will start Theme 4 in our series which is entitled Amazing Animals.

The first story in the theme is a humorous story about a policeman who loves to give safety tips to school children but no one ever listens....until he brings a dog named Gloria.

The comprehension strategies we will cover are monitoring and clarifying, fantasy and realism, and cause and effect.

The vocabulary words for the week are accident, attention, audience, commands, officer, and safety.

The phonics skills will cover the r-controlled vowels of ar, or, ore, and the syllables -tion and -ture.

PBIS

We had a successful week learning about the new behavior program that will be implemented at Elizabeth Ide (Prairieview and Lakeview started in September). The children did a great job during the week and were rewarded with a juggling assembly on Friday.

Math

We will continue working on counting money. The children brought home their chapter test on the first part of our money unit. Please go over it with your child. I think they did well. In this chapter we will be adding and subtracting money.
We took the fact test. Many children did not do as well this time as they have done in the past. Time to get back to practicing those fact!

Student of the Week

Our special student was Paul. A few of his favorite things are the color blue, tigers, shrimp, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, swimming, playing outside and soccer. Paul's grandfather played soccer in the Olympics and two World Cups! It is no surprise that Paul wants to be a soccer player when he grows up.

A note went home about 100th day. Please take time to read it, believe it or not it is on the 7th of February!

Valentine's Day is coming. Our class party coordinator has asked for a volunteer to donate paper plates and two volunteers to donate juice boxes. Please let me know if you would be able to help out.

Week of January 24, 2011

2011-01-20T07:30:00.000-08:00

Reading

We will have our Theme 3 Review. There will be two stories about neighborhoods. The first story tells about how a little girl can be a big help to her grandfather. The second story takes us on a walk through a boy's busy city neighborhood.

We will cover the comprehension strategies of questioning, summarizing, monitoring, clarifying, comparing, and contrasting.

The vocabulary words for the week are deliveries, flyer, grand opening, grocery store, success, supermarket, brave, plaster, barrio, mural, fiesta, shrubbery, trophies, customs, and traditions.

In phonics we will cover consonant digraphs, base words, endings -er and -est, and vowel pairs ai and ay.

The grammar lessons will cover proper nouns and plurals.

Pajama Day

Next Thursday, January 27th is "Pajama Day".

Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports

Elizabeth Ide will be implementing an approach to discipline called PBIS. This is a proactive systems approach to establishing the behavioral supports and social culture needed for all students in a school to achieve social, emotional, and academic success.

We will begin by establishing clear expectations for behavior that will be taught, modeled, and reinforced across all settings and by all staff. Our week will culminate with a juggling celebration assembly.

Math

We are working on counting money. This is an important skill so please review at home with your child. If you can give them a handful of coins and they can count them correctly you know they are on their way to mastering this life skill.

There will be a timed fact test during the week.

Student of the Week

Our special student this week was Rebecca O. Rebecca has two sisters. Some of her favorite things are the colors pink and lime green, lions, pizza, Junie B. Jones books, soccer, math, cleaning and studying. Rebecca can do a flip, she has her own room and she really loves her two sisters. When she grows up she wants to be a doctor.

Week of January 17th, 2011

2011-01-10T12:56:00.000-08:00

No School Monday in Honor of Martin Luther King Jr.

Reading

Our story is Jamaica Louise James. It is about a girl who makes her community a happier place by decorating the subway with her art work.

High Frequency words are: believe, lady, and whole.

Phonics will cover the vowel pairs ee, ea, and the syllable -tion and -ture.

The Grammar lessons will cover nouns that have a different spelling when they are plurals.

Science

We have been learning about earthworms in science. The children have observed worms on their desks. They can locate the saddle, segments, bristles, head and tail on a worm. Some of the children were able to see the worm's mouth. All of the children saw egg sacs. We put together a wormbin and will keep the worms in our room until spring. The children will feed the worms the left overs from their snacks; banana peels, apple cores, a grape or two, and strawberry tops. Worms eat any organic material.

Math

We finished our short chapter on probability and will begin money on Tuesday. The children brought their test home on Thursday. They did well.

If you have not sent coins in for your child please do so as soon as possible.

Student of the Week

Rebecca Y. was our special student this week. Rebecca has an older brother and an older sister. Some of her favorite things are the color pink, fish, corndogs, swimming math and reading. She loves spending time with her family. When Rebecca grows up she wants to be a doctor.

Week of January 10th, 2011

2011-01-06T07:52:00.000-08:00

Reading

Due to Benchmarking we will not have a regular reading lesson next week. There will be no spelling list or spelling test on Friday.

Recess

If the temperature (with wind chill) is above 20 degrees, we will go out. Please send snow pants and boots so your child can play in the snow at recess. Those who are not properly dressed will need to stand on the blacktop.

Reading Logs

Most logs have been returned and the January ones have been sent home. Remember the children are to be reading each night for at least 20 minutes.

Worms

We will be beginning a unit on earthworms. The children will see how a worm bin is made. They will also learn many interesting facts about worms and the benefit they are to our earth.

Student of the Week

Jessica was our special student. Jessica has 2 sisters and 1 brother. A few of her favorite things are the color pink, dogs, pancakes, swimming, art, computers, fishing, bowling and the wii. Jessica is good about reading to her brother and sisters. She shows others she cares by being helpful. When Jessica grows up she would like to be a dog trainer.

Math

We have finished chapter 9 and will begin chapter 10 on Monday. In chapter 10 we will learn about probability.

In-School Field Trip

On Friday, January 14th the children will take part in an in-school activity. They will learn about rocks by doing several "hands-on" activities. They will learn about the layers of the earth and where various kinds of rocks are found.

Week of December 13th, 2010

2010-12-01T14:33:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays!

May the weeks ahead be filled with happy times centered around family and friends.

Reading

Our story for the the week of January 3rd, when we return from winter break, will be Big Bushy Mustache. This is a story about a young boy who gets a part in the school play. His excitement over being allowed to wear the special mustache leads to an interesting outcome.

Vocabulary Words for the week are, bushy, costume, disguise, handsome, mirror, and mustache.

The phonics skills we will cover are the vowel pairs ow, ou and suffixes -ly and -ful.

In grammar we will continue to work on plurals.

The comprehension strategies we will cover are problem solving, predicting, and inferring.

Visit to Fairview Village

On Thursday, Dec. 16th, the children will be visiting Fairview Village to sing for the residents. Please send your child with a sack lunch that day. We will be returning to school at about 12:15 p.m. which will cause them to miss the hot lunch program at Ide. We will be eating in the classroom that day.

Math

We completed the chapter on double digit subtraction. This week the children will be learning more about collecting data and using the information to make graphs and charts.

Star of the Week

Clare was the special student last week. Clare has two brothers, Daniel, a sophomore at Downers South, and Patrick, a freshman at Benet. She also has two sisters, MacKenzie who is at Prairieview in 4th grade and Mary who is one. Some of Clare's favorite things are the color green, dolphins, mash potatoes, Henry and Mudge, swimming, math, soccer, fishing and playing with friends. Clare shows others she cares by sharing her things with them.

The class has been in the very capable hands of Mrs. Burrows. She will continue to be with the children this week while I am recovery from surgery. I am hoping to visit them on Friday to wish them all a Happy Holiday and assure them that I will be back on Monday, January 3rd.

Week of December 6th, 2010

2010-11-22T07:29:00.000-08:00

It's Here!

Reading

Next week we will have our third Writer's Workshop on Persuasive Writing. Your child will have to see how persuasive he or she can be in convincing someone they need a special gift. They will need to organize details around this topic and proceed to write a paragraph to persuade you or someone else to get them what they want.

Christmas Around the World and Holiday Homework

The week of December 13th we will be doing a unit about holiday celebrations in different countries. There will be no reading lesson that week. In addition to learning about other countries the children are to share their own family holiday traditions with the class. Each child received a sheet explaining the assignment with the date they are to do their oral report. Using a poster with some pictures will help your child remember what they want to talk about. Their report should be about 3 to 5 minutes long. The purpose of this activity is to introduce the children to speaking in front of the class. Your help in preparing them at home is appreciated.

Math

We will continue to practice two digit subtraction. Our next test will be on Thursday.

Many children are still counting on their fingers. PLEASE keep working on the math facts.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

It was nice meeting with many of you at the conference for your child. I hope your questions were answered. You can always reach me by e-mail if you need to do so.

Student of the Week

Our special student was Tommy. Tommy has one sister and one brother. Some of Tommy's favorite things are the color blue, dogs, ice cream, baseball, math, and playing outside. Tommy shows people he care about them by making them laugh. Tommy wants to be a fireman when he grows up.

Christmas Caroling

The second grade children will be going to Fairview Village in Downers Grove on December 16th to sing holiday carols and give holiday cards to the residents. Please return the permission slips by December 10th. On that day the children will be eating in the classroom because we will be gone during lunch. Please send a sack lunch since they will not be able to participate in the hot lunch program.

Christmas Party

Our class Christmas party will be on Friday, December 17th.

Week of November 22nd, and 29th, 2010

2010-11-17T13:42:00.000-08:00

May all of you have a happy Thanksgiving spent with those you love.

Reading

Due to the short week, we will not do a reading lesson next week. The week following the Thanksgiving break we will read A Visit to the Fire Station. This continues our theme of neighborhoods. It is about a group of children that visit the firehouse in order to learn about how firefighters do their jobs.

The comprehension skills we will work on include, topic, main idea, and supporting details.

The comprehension strategy is questioning.

In phonics we will review vowel pairs ai, and ay and compound words.

The vocabulary words are: chief, emergencies, firefighters, dispatch, fire engine, and gear.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

The week of November 29th we will hold parent/ teacher conferences. All of you have received a note with your scheduled conference on it. Thank you to those of you who have returned your notes in a timely fashion. For those of you who have not returned your note please do so as soon as possible. On the night of the conference please try and arrive a few minutes early so we can begin on time. I will be keeping to the 15 minute limit so I will remain on schedule. If you feel you need more time we will schedule another meeting. i do not want to keep anyone waiting, I know you all have busy schedules.

Music Concert

The children did a wonderful job! I am so happy that the entire class was present. Ms. Wyse prepared them well.

Math

The children have been working hard to learn regrouping to add and subtract. We will continue to work on this skill. We will have a chapter test on Tuesday. They took the November fact tests during the week. Please use the week ends when they do not have additional homework to practice their facts. I still have many "finger counters" even with facts below 10.

Student of the Week

Jeffery was our special student. Jeffery has two brothers and one sister. Some of Jeff favorite things are the color pink, gorillas, anything chocolate, baseball recess and playing video games. Jeff likes to help other people. He hasn't decided what he wants to be when he grow up.

Tuesday is "Funny Feet Day".

Weekof November 15th, 2010

2010-11-08T07:32:00.000-08:00

Reading

We are beginning a new theme, Around Town. In this theme, we will read about different kinds of neighborhoods. Our first story is called China Town. This story is about a boy who lives in Chinatown with his parents and grandmother. He tells about the walks he takes through Chinatown each day with his grandmother.

The comprehension strategy we will work on is summarizing.

The comprehension skill is making judgements.

The grammar lessons will focus on naming words (common nouns).

The phonics lessons will review consonant digraphs th, wh, sh, ch, and word endings -er, and -est.

The vocabulary words are: apartment, delivery, market, handcarts, and celebrations.

The high frequency words are: during , heard, lion, and winter.

Math

We completed the chapter on double digit addition. The children took the chapter test. I will grade them and return them early in the week. We will begin double digit subtraction this week.

Conference Notes

Your child brought home a note with your scheduled conference time on it. Please complete the bottom portion and return it. Please notify me as soon as possible if the time you scheduled or were assigned will not work so I can reschedule the conference if possible. We can do a phone conference if you are unable to come to school. Report cards will go home on Tuesday, November 24th.

Concert
I hope to see all of you at the concert on Wednesday night. Please have your child at the new gym at Lakeview by 6:45 p.m. The boys and girls should wear Christmas colored pajamas.

Star of the Week

Our special student was Ian. Ian is an only child. Some of his favorite things are the color purple, elephants, apples, The Diary of a Wimpy Kid, baseball, gym, and playing outside. He shows others he cares by being nice and making things for them. Ian is quite the traveler. He went to Disneyland and Disney World in the same year and has been to Spain, France and Europe.

Week of November 8th, 2010

2010-11-04T08:44:00.000-07:00

Happy Veteran's Day

Reading

We wrap up our nature walk theme this week. We will read two selections about owls. Owl Moon is a realistic fiction story about a little girl and her father who look for owls in the woods on a cold winter night. Our other story is entitled Owls. This book gives facts about what owls look like, where they live, and how they hunt for food.

The comprehension strategies we will discuss are predicting, infering, guestioning, monitoring, clarifying, comparing, and contrasting.

In phonics we will emphasize long vowels o, u, and e.

Our vocabulary words are: clearing, echo, meadow, owling, pumped, shadows, threading, rarely, active, blend, outlined, and curved.

The grammar lessons will focus on telling sentences and questions.

Winter Coats

Now that the weather is changing I need your help to keep your children healthy. On days that you require them to wear coats please instruct them to listen to their teacher if she tells them to wear their coat out for recess. Often they feel they do not need them. I try and be aware of the outside temperature. If it has warmed up I don't mind if they leave their coats inside, however, it can be windy on the playground and often they are cold once they get out.

It is also a good idea to have them keep a sweater or light sweat shirt at school in case they get cold in the classroom.

Math

We are on our second chapter on double digit addition. Our test will be next week. They are doing a great job with this concept. Thank you for supporting them at home!

Mathathon information was sent home with your child on Thursday. If you have any questions you can direct them to Mrs. Bouton the school librarian.

Music Program

The children are working hard to get ready for the program. Remember to mark your calendars for Wednesday, November 17th at Lakeview at 7:00. They are to wear holiday colored pajamas. Grandparents and other extended family members are more than welcome.

Star of the Week

Emily was our special student. Emily has two brothers and a dog named Bella. Some of her favorite things are the color green, dogs, pasta, baseball, reading, playing with friends, and doing projects. She thinks she is a star because she follows the rules.....and she does! When Emily grows up she wants to be a teacher.

Week of November 1st, 2010

2010-10-23T18:13:00.000-07:00

November is Here!

Reading

Our story this week is Around the Pond: Who's Been Here? This is a story about two children, Cammy and William who go for a walk around the pond in search of blueberries to bring home to their mother who has promised to make a pie. On their walk the children see animal footprints, numerous animals, shells and even a beaver dam. The illustrations are beautiful! The children will love this story.

The comprehension strategy of monitoring and clarifying will be stressed.

The comprehension skills to be learned are categorizing and classifying.

The phonics skills will be double consonants as in the words class, dress, puppet, and yellow. We will also work on the vowel pattern of VCV as in the words pilot, finish, and closet.

Our vocabulary words are: bank, edge, path, crater, moss, and shallow.

In our grammar lessons we will work on when to use an exclamation point.

Reading Logs

The October logs were due Friday. Those who returned them received the November sheet. If your child did not return it yet, please send it in as soon as possible whether it is full or not. As a reward they will be able to participate in a pajama day on Friday, November 5th. They can bring slippers and change into them at school but please have them wear shoes to school because we will go out for recess. No stuffed animals, please. The children will also receive a Pizza Hut coupon for completing their logs.

Math

The Chapter 5 test was Friday. In Chapter 6 we will continue to work on regrouping to add double digit numbers. We did our October fact tests. Although many have improved it is important to continue to review the facts at home. Fifty or more in 5 minutes is good at this time.This should be a part of their daily homework routine.

Election Day

The children will not have school on Tuesday, November 2nd. The teachers will have an institute day due to the use of our building for voting.

If you Give a Mouse a Cupcake

The field trip to C.O.D. to see the play was very nice. It was a beautiful day and the play was very entertaining. There were several parts where the children were able to interact with the cast. I hope they talked about the trip when they got home on Monday.

Star of the Week

Our special student this week was Sarah. Sarah has one brother. Some of her favorite things are the color purple, dogs, pizza, swimming, and playing with friends. Sarah shows people she cares by being nice to them. When Sarah grows up she wants to be a cheer leader.

The Halloween party was a big success! The kids had a great time. Thank you to all of you who provided items for the party and to the moms who planned the games and were here to help: Mrs. Wisdom, Mrs. Cigrand, Mrs. Merrinette, and Mrs. Harmon.

Week of October 25th, 2010

2010-10-20T08:03:00.000-07:00

MAP Testing

We will not be doing a reading lesson next week. The children will be taking the MAP test, (Measures of Academic Progress). MAP for Primary Grades is an evaluation published by Northwest Evaluation Association. This test will replace the IOWA Test of Basic Skills formerly given to our students. A letter was sent home from Mrs. Hansen explaining the test. Here is the web site she suggested you visit if you want more information, Parent Toolkit at, http://www.nwea.org%20%3e%3eparent/>>Parent Support.

We will have a list of Halloween words but there will not be a blue homework page. We will do various spelling activities in class.

Math

You should have received their latest math tests. They all did very well. We are working on regrouping currently. We will have our third timed test on the math facts during the week.

Music Program

The children are practicing for the second grade music program. Make sure you mark your calendars for Wednesday, November 17th. Ms. Wyse always does a great job preparing them children so you won't want to miss this special night.

Star of the Week

Our special student this week was Brett. Brett has one sister. Some of his favorite things are the color blue, dogs, Pierogis, baseball, math, sharks and playing the wii. He shows others he cares by being nice to them. When Brett grows up he wants to be a baseball player.

Happy Hallo-Wiener

Mrs. Hansen came into our classroom. She read the children a story and had them make Hallo-wiener dogs dressed for Halloween. The dogs are decorating our hallway. The children love to see Mrs. Hansen. They really look forward to her visits. I think it is great for them to have this experience with her.

Halloween Party

Friday, October 29th is our Halloween parade and party. The children will parade around the school at 1:40 p.m. The party will be immediately after in our classroom. Please remember, the children cannot pass out candy treats. Also, no costumes can have weapons. All costumes must be brought to school in a bag and put on in the afternoon only.

Remember, Monday is our field trip.

Week of October 18th, 2010

2010-10-13T09:05:00.000-07:00

Reading

We will read the story Exploring Parks with Ranger Dockett. Dockett is an urban park ranger who teaches people about exploring nature.

We will discuss the comprehension strategy of distinguishing between fact and opinion.

The phonics lessons will emphasize consonant clusters with r, l, and s. We will learn about the two sounds for c. We will also review the long vowel sounds of o, u, and e.

The vocabulary words for next week are: exploring, habitat, protect, ranger, tours, and urban.

Our grammar lessons will focus on command sentences.

Descriptive Stories

The children wrote stories describing their Halloween costumes. As I mentioned before, we will be focusing on the traits of good writing this year. In writing descriptive stories the children were encouraged to think about word choice. When we explore word choice in the classroom, we focus on the parts of speech that writers use to convey meaning. It's about selecting words carefully to craft fluent sentences and create a lasting image in the reader's mind.

Reading Logs

Just to clarify, the logs go home at the beginning of the month. Each night as your child reads for at least 20 minutes they are to write down the title of the book they are reading. If they are reading a chapter book, which many of them are, they will write the same book down until they finish it. If they fill up the log sheet before the end of the month they can ask for another log sheet or you can add a piece of paper from home. They are to turn in their logs on the last school day of the month. Each month they will get a special reward. In September they ate lunch in the room. In October those who turn in their logs will be able to participate in "Pajama Day". A note will come home letting you know what day this will be.

Math

We will have a review of Chapter 4 on Tuesday. The test will be Wednesday. Thursday we will begin Chapter 5 on exploring 2 digit addition and subtraction. Knowing their facts is really important for this concept. Keep practicing!

Fire Safety Assembly

On October 14th, Lt. Tabiz from the Darien-Woodridge Fire Department reviewed fire safety with the children. As usual he did a great job of educating and entertaining the children.

Dates to Remember

Wednesday, October 20th, Early Dismissal
Friday, October 22nd, Ide PTO Halloween Party
Friday, October 29th, Halloween Parade and Parties
Tuesday, November 2nd, No School, Institute Day
Thursday, November 11th, Veterans Day, No School

Progress Reports were sent home on Friday, October 15th. Please sign and return to school.

Star of the Week

Sadie was our special student this week. Sadie has two brothers, Alex and Cooper. Some of Sadie's favorite things are the color pink, puppies, skating, music, and meatloaf. She likes the book Green Eggs and Ham and enjoys playing with her friends. Sadie shows others she cares by helping them. When she grows up Sadie would like to be a teacher.

Halloween

Our Halloween party is scheduled for Friday, October 29th. The children's parade will begin at 1:40 outside the school (weather permitting). Everyone is invited to come and watch. Our classroom party will start at 2:00 p.m. Students should bring their costumes to school in a bag on Friday. Please make sure your child is able to put on his/her own costume with relative ease. No make-up will be applied at school and no toy weapons of any kind are allowed.

Week of October 11th, 2010

2010-10-05T13:47:00.000-07:00

Happy Columbus Day

Reading

In place of the story we will again be doing a reading/writing workshop. Our focus will be descriptive writing. Descriptive writing includes the traits of word choice, convention, and presentation. Word Choice is working on words to use so that the reader can picture what is being described. Convention and Presentation will make it easier for others to read what is written. These two traits include using correct punctuation, capitalization, and clear, neat handwriting. As we work in our writing workshop we will be stressing the skills of prewriting, drafting, proofreading, and publishing.

There is a spelling list and test as usual.

Dates to Remember

Monday, October 11th, No School - Columbus Day
Wednesday, October 20th, Early Dismissal
Friday, October 22nd, Family Halloween Party
Monday, October 25th, Field Trip
Friday, October 29th, Halloween Parade (1:40) & Parties

Snack

Please remember that snack should be something nutritious. I am seeing fruit snacks, cookies, fruit roll ups, and other inappropriate snacks. The number one ingredient should not be sugar. Fruit, veggies, cheese, yogurt, plain popcorn, or pretzels are an example of good choices. Thank you for your cooperation.

Star of the Week

Mariam was our student of the week. Mariam has one brother and one sister. Some of her favorite things are: the color purple, cats, soccer, math, spelling, art, reading (her favorite book is Purplicious), and the computer. She always likes to do her best and she enjoys helping her friends especially when they are hurt. Mariam would like to be a doctor when she grows up. Mariam's mom came into the room and shared a book with the class.

Writing

A very important focus of second grade is writing. Sending letters and notes to people seems to be a thing of the past. However, it is a great way to have your children practice the skills they are learning. Grandparents would love to receive letters as would favorite aunts and uncles. Try having your children write a note to a cousin they haven't seen in awhile or a sick friend or relative. This can be done on the computer or the old fashion way with paper and pencil (which also provides penmanship practice). Be sure to check their spelling and grammar and praise them for a job well done.

The PTO is asking for two parents from each room to help with the Halloween Party. Please contact Mrs. Wisdom if you are able to help. Mary can be reached at: mary.wisdom@comcast.net

Week of October 4th, 2010

2010-09-30T07:24:00.000-07:00

FALL HAS ARRIVED!

Reading

We will begin Theme 2 in our reading series: Nature Walk. Our story is a fictional story called Henry and Mudge and the Starry Sky. The story is about a boy named Henry who goes camping with his parents and his dog Mudge. Each one of them enjoys camping, but not for the same reasons. The campers in our room will be able to relate well to this story!

The comprehension strategies of comparing and contrasting will be reviewed.

In phonics the lessons will emphasize the long vowels o, u, and e and the sounds for the letter g.

The vocabulary words are: backpack, campfire, camping, hike, lanterns, and tent.

The grammar lessons will focus on telling sentences and questions.

Reading Logs

The September logs were due by Friday. If your child returned theirs they received a new sheet for October. Those who did complete the logs will have lunch in the classroom with Ms. Austin and myself on Wednesday, Oct. 6th. They will be able to purchase a hot lunch as usual that day. The October logs will be due on October 29th.

Math

Our chapter test will be on Monday. We will begin a new chapter on Tuesday, it will cover number concepts and patterns. This includes ordinal numbers, greater than and less than, rounding to the nearest 10, odd and even numbers and using a hundred chart.
The children have taken the second timed fact test. The results will be sent home early in the week. Keep practicing those facts!

Star of the Week

Jimmy was our special student this week. Jimmy has two brothers and three sisters. Jimmy is a great gymnast and enjoys may other sports like soccer, basketball, swimming and baseball. His favorite food is pizza, he likes fish and the color blue. At school he likes gym best. He shows others how much he cares by always being helpful.

Social Studies

In Social Studies we have been working on maps. The children have learned about map symbols, a map key, compass rose, and directions.

Columbus Day

Remember there is no school on Monday, October 11th.

Our final pledge children were Jeremy, Abby, Tommy, Emily, Kathan, and Jonathan. They did a great job!

Week of September 27th, 2010

2010-09-21T07:30:00.000-07:00

Reading

We will be reading two stories. Our stories will be used to compare fantasy and nonfiction. Our fantasy story is about two hippos: George and Martha, Round and Round by James Marshall. The nonfiction selection is from the magazine Ranger Rick, titled Hippos.

The comprehension strategy of connecting and comparing will be taught.

The phonics lessons will review all the short vowel sounds, long vowel 'a' and the VCCV pattern.

The vocabulary words for the week are; herd, mammal, moisture, nostrils, and relatives.

The grammar lessons will review naming and action parts of sentences.

Power Hour has begun and is going well.

Math

The children took the chapter 2 test. In chapter 3 we will be working on place value and double digit addition and subtraction. Please keep practicing the math facts. We will have the second timed tests for addition and subtraction this week.

Daily Pledge

The children who said the pledge during the week were: Jeffery, Anthony, Brett, Daniel I., Megan, A.J., Paul, and Ian. They all did a wonderful job!

Star of the Week

Our student of the week was Abby. Abby has a big brother, Connor and a baby brother, Gavin. Abby likes the color purple. She enjoys eating salami. Soccer, swimming, recess and playing with friends are the activities Abby likes best. She also enjoys reading and shared her favorite book, Abby's Chairs with the class.

Class Pictures

The children will have their pictures taken on Thursday, September 30th. The forms went home a few days ago. Please complete the information on the envelope and return it to school. All children will have their picture taken for the class composite.

Silly Bands

Many of the children have been wearing "silly bands" to school. Unfortunately, like any toy, they are a distraction to your children. We are asking you to instruct your child to keep their "silly bands" at home. This will prevent us from having to take them away in the classroom. Thank you for your cooperation, we appreciate your help in trying to keep the children as focused as possible during their school day.

Homework

This class gets an A+ for completing homework. I have been very happy to see that everyone has been doing their math sheets and the blue spelling homework. I know they are learning to be very responsible but I also know that behind every good student is an involved parent. Thank you for your part!!

Reading Logs

The September reading logs are due on Friday, October 1st. If your child fills in all the lines feel free to add your own sheet of paper or have your child ask me for another recording sheet. New log sheets will be given out on Friday, October 1st. I do keep a record of the children who return their logs. Those who do will be eating in the classroom with me on Wednesday, October 6th. They can bring their lunch from home or purchase a lunch as usual.

Week of September 20th, 2010

2010-09-16T09:09:00.000-07:00

Reading

Our story for the week is Mrs. Brown Went to Town. As the title suggests, it is about a lady who leaves the farm for a trip into town. It is a rhyming story that tells about farm animals moving into Mrs. Brown's house in her absence. As you can imagine this causes a few problems.

The comprehension strategies to be covered are predicting and inferring.

In grammar we will be talking about the action parts of sentences.

Our vocabulary words are: different, floor, letter, move, poor, and word.

In phonics we will work on the long a and long i vowels using the CVCe pattern.

Daily Pledge

Two children each day from our class have been saying the pledge over the public address system. Congratulations to the following children for doing an excellent job: Clare, Sarah, Paulina, Jimmy, Rebecca, Mariam, Jessica, Sadie, and Danny M.

Math

We will continue to work on strategies for subtraction. We have been reviewing fact families which helps the children see the relationship between addition and subtraction.
Monday we will complete the chapter on subtraction. We will have our test on Tuesday. We will then begin learning about place value.

Star of the Week

Jonathan was our first Student of the Week. Jonathan has a brother and a sister. His favorite color is red. He likes monkeys, soccer, pancakes with chocolate, playing the wii and reading Star Wars books. He shows others he cares by respecting and caring for them. Jonathan wants to be a chef when he grows up.

Ide Book Fair

Thank you to all of you who attended the PTO Book Fair. This is an important fund raiser for our school and we appreciate your support.
Also, thank you to those of you who generously made donations to our class library. The children were excited about the selections I chose with the the gift certificates.

Magazine Drive

Another important fund raiser for our district is the magazine drive. Our second 'turn in day' will be Tuesday, September 21st. Any support you give is appreciated.

Week of September 13th, 2010

2010-09-09T08:25:00.000-07:00

Reading

Our story will be Julius, a story about a pig that comes to live with a little girl and her family.

We will discuss the comprehension strategies of Fantasy vs. Realism.

Our phonics lesson will emphasize the short vowels, "o, u, and e" and the VCCV pattern in words.

The vocabulary words for the week are: brought, reason, special, surprise.

The grammar lessons will focus on synonyms and naming parts of a sentence.

RtI

A note was sent home on Friday regarding your child's placement for reading. The note stated we would start changing rooms for reading on Monday, September 13th. However, we are making some last minute adjustments to our program and we will not be starting "Power Hour" until Monday, September 20th. The children are still having reading in their homerooms. We are just postponing switching classrooms.

Curriculum Night

I really enjoyed seeing many of you Thursday night. I hope most of your questions were answered. Remember, it is easy to e-mail me if there is something you need clarified. I hope the expectations for second grade are clearer now. Checking their green folders and returning them each day along with the assignment notebook will help keep your child organized.
I am looking forward to working with you and your child to make this a successful year.

Thank you to those of you who were able to sign up for the class parties. We still need some help for the Halloween, Winter, and Valentine's Day party. In addition to helpers at the party we need people to send in fruit and/or paper products.

Math

We finished our first chapter in math and began Chapter 2 on Friday. In this chapter we

will use various strategies to reinforce subtraction. Some of the vocabulary words they will be using are: subtract, take away, compare, count back, difference, fact family and missing addend. We continue to practice facts with our flash cards. Please continue to do the same at home.

Book Fair/Ice Cream Social

The PTO Book Fair will be Wednesday, September 16th in the Ide gym. Please show your support by attending. Our PTO is instrumental in doing many wonderful things to benefit the children at Elizabeth Ide.

2010-09-03T13:00:00.000-07:00

Week of September 6th, 2010

Mark Your Calendars

Monday, Sept. 6th: No school, Labor Day
Wed., Sept. 9th: Curriculum Night 7:00-8:00
Thurs., Sept. 16th: Ide Book Fair/Ice Cream Social
Friday, Sept. 24th: Early Dismissal
Monday, Oct. 11th: No School, Columbus Day

Reading/Writing Workshop

In lieu of a story, your child will be participating in a Reading/Writing Workshop. The writing traits that we will concentrate on are Ideas and Organization. The students will follow the five steps of the writing process to write their own story: prewriting, drafting, revising, proofreading, and publishing. This is difficult for the children because they are use to just writing something once and feeling that they are finished. They will add details, correct grammar and expand on their ideas.

WE WILL STILL HAVE A SPELLING TEST THIS WEEK.

Math

In math we will use the strategies we know to find missing numbers. We will review how to add 3 numbers together and continue to work on adding strategies. Our first math test will be on Thursday or Friday.

Curriculum Night

Thursday, September 9th is Curriculum Night. Please meet in the Elizabeth Ide gym at 7:00 p.m. Mrs. Hansen will talk briefly and then you will be dismissed to my classroom. I will go over the behavior plan, our daily schedule, and the second grade curriculum. I will also answer any of your general questions. There will be no time for individual conferences that night, however, you can always contact me privately via e-mail or phone concerning your child. CURRICULUM NIGHT IS FOR PARENTS ONLY. PLEASE ALLOW YOUR CHILDREN TO REMAIN AT HOME.

Spelling

We had our first spelling test on Friday. I think the children did well. Hopefully, you will have a better understanding of our spelling procedure after hearing more about it at Curriculum Night.

I hope to see most of you on Thursday night. Again, please remember this night is for parents only.

Week of August 2nd, 2010

2010-08-26T13:47:00.000-07:00

Second grade has started! I look forward to working with you and your children this year.
You will be able to access this blog each week by going to the District 66 website, clicking on Elizabeth Ide, Clicking on 2nd grade, then clicking on my name. I will not send home a hard copy unless you tell me you do not have a computer available.

Reading

We will read the fantasy story Dragon Gets By.

We will discuss the comprehension strategy of rereading for understanding.

The Phonics lessons will emphasize the short "a" and short "i" sounds.

The Vocabulary words are the days of the week.

The Grammar lessons will focus on the parts of a sentence.

The Spelling words for each week will come home at the beginning of the week. Each student will have their own list of words to learn for the Friday test. We will have a pretest every Monday.

Math

We will continue to review skills from last year. We are also practicing our addition and subtraction facts with the flashcards that you sent to school. Addition strategies including 'counting on', 'doubles' and 'make a ten' will be discussed.

Snack

We have snack each morning. Please remember to send your child with a HEALTHY snack. Your cooperation is appreciated.

Dates to Remember

Monday, Sept. 6th, Labor Day, No School
Thursday, Sept. 9th, Curriculum Night
Thursday, Sept. 16th, Book Fair/Ice Cream Social
Friday, Sept. 24th, Early Dismissal

Special Schedule

Here are the days of the week that we have our "special".

PE Every day
Music Tuesday and Wednesday
Art Art
Library Tuesday and Thursday

2010-05-28T07:45:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe!

Most years end for me with mixed feelings. Like the children, I look forward to long relaxing days without a schedule to follow and hours of freedom. Unlike the children, I am always a little sad to see summer come and watch those smiling faces leave for the last time. In past years I would always see them around the building from time to time. This year I have to send them to Prairieview and I won't ever see them. This year is also more difficult since I have had many of your children for two years. They really have come to feel like my own. It is not easy saying goodbye to them or those of you that I have gotten to know so well. I am happy knowing they are ready emotionally as well as academically to handle the challenge of third grade.

I hope you all have a wonderful summer. I know you will enjoy your children.
I will give them my summer address and encourage them to practice their writing skills by sending me information about their summer and telling me how many books they have read.

Due to the repairs being done at Ide my computer will be shut down sometime Tuesday. If you need to get a message to me after 9:00 am Tuesday copy the office in case my computer is down.

Week of May 24th, 2010

2010-05-20T13:05:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our final week of school.

Reading

Our last story will be The School Mural by Sarah Vazquez.

We will concentrate on the Comprehension Strategy of Problem Solving.

The Vocabulary Words for the week are: event, mural, pride, project, scene, and sketches.

The Phonics Skills will cover base words with -ed, and -ing endings where we drop the final e.

In Grammar we will compare things using adjectives.

Math

We completed our final addition and subtraction fact tests for the year and you should have received the results. If your child is not able to get 100 facts in 5 minutes, then they need to do a lot of practice over the summer. Multiplication facts are coming in third grade!!

Tickets

Each child that turned in a reading log for at least 6 months received ticket to Six Flags. Thank you for all of your support at home in completing the logs each month.

Elizabeth Ide Picnic

The school picnic/field day is on Friday, May 28th. Second grade will attend the picnic in the afternoon. The PTO is serving McDonald's hamburgers, chips, fruit snacks and a juice box. If your child does not like this unch or there is a problem with allergies, or religious food restrictions please send a sack lunch that day.

Chicago Botanic Garden

Tuesday, May 25th is our trip to the Botanic Garden. Please remember to dress your child for the weather and send a completely disposable lunch. We will leave as soon as possible after the children arrive and we will return at approximately 2:15. Your child will not eat a snack that day so make sure they have a good breakfast and substantial lunch.

Prairieview Visit

The children will meet their pen pals on Thursday, May 27th. We will go to Prairieview after lunch and spend about an hour and a half visiting and looking around. Can you believe they will be in 3rd grade so soon!

Week of May 17th, 2010

2010-05-13T07:15:00.000-07:00

Reading

Next week's story is, Moses Goes to a Concert. The story is about a class of deaf children who attend a concert where the percussionist is also deaf.

We will concentrate on the comprehension strategy of noting details.

The vocabulary words for the next week are: deaf, hearing, instruments, percussion, signs, vibration, concert, orchestra, recovered, hearing.

The phonics skill we will cover is long "i" including igh and ie.

The grammar lesson will be about using adjectives to describe what we see.

Field Trip

We will be going to the Chicago Botanical Gardens on Tuesday. There is no need to send a snack that day. Please send a sack lunch in a disposable bag and dress for the weather.

Dates to Remember

Tuesday, May 25th Field Trip
Friday, May 28th Ide Picnic
Monday, May 31st No School, Memorial Day
Wednesday, June 2nd Last day, dismissal at 10:00am

Math

We are working on 3-digit addition. The children need to regroup tens to do this. They are doing well and seem to be comfortable with the concept.

Week of May 9th, 2010

2010-05-04T08:49:00.000-07:00

Enjoy the day!

Assemblies

We have had two assemblies this month. The first was a version of the game, Jeopardy. The kids had a great time answering the questions. Everyone had a turn to hit the button if they knew the answer. Our team didn't win but I really think the kids enjoyed the experience. Thank you for dressing your child in red!

Our second assembly was given by Craig Pierce, an author who writes about dogs. He has a series of books call the American Dog Collection. He also brought one of his dogs to the assembly. We have the PTO to thank for both of these wonderful assemblies.

Thank You!

What a wonderful week! I received so many lovely things from the children. They were very excited about giving me their gifts of candy, notes, pictures, flowers and sentences. I really appreciate the effort that went into these daily gifts. They truly made me feel special.

Reading

Our story next week is The Art Lesson by Tomie dePaloa. Some of the students are already familiar with this story through their study of Tomie dePaola in first grade.

The comprehension strategy is author's viewpoint.

The vocabulary words are: crayons, chalk, copy, powders, smock, practice, ruin, copper, violet, turquoise, and monitor.

In phonics we will review the vowel pairs oo, ew, ue, and ou.

The grammar lessons will address irregular forms of verbs. We will also discuss identifying whether a group of words is a sentence.

Library Books

All library books are due back on Monday, May 17th.

Third Grade Parent Night
On Wednesday, May 19th there will be an information night at Prairieview for parents of next year's third graders. It will begin at 6:30 pm. This meeting is for parents only, no children please.

Friday, May 17th is early dismissal.

Week of May 3rd, 2010

2010-04-29T16:31:00.000-07:00

May is here!

Can you believe it?

Reading
We will be reviewing Theme 5 this week. The stories are More Stories Julian Tells and Slippery Siblings.

We will concentrate on the comprehension strategies of making generalizations, following directions, and making judgements.

The vocabulary words are: advice, curve, instructions, message, travel, cartwheel, sparkled, dashboard, vibrate, bobsled, catchers, steered, facility, provides, course, and straightaways.

In phonics we will review the -le and -er endings in two syllable words, contractions, base words with -ed, -ing endings, and silent consonants gh, kn, and b.

In our grammar lessons we will talk about present and past tense verbs.

Math
We will be working on place value to the hundreth place this week.

Rainforest Donations
The children at Ide collected $293.58 to donate to the Adopt-A-Rainforest fund. Their donation will be used for a conservation project in either Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, or Nicaragua.

WOW!

First of all, it was great to see all of you at the Ide Open House. The children were very proud of their reports and other projects and they were anxious for you to see them.

Next, I can't begin to thank you for your very generous donations to our class. Thank you to all of you who gave me money to buy books for our room. I was able to purchase $85.00 worth of books! I chose many new chapter books and even got the whole A to Z Mysteries series. The children were very excited about having so many new books to read. Again, thank you so much for being so generous!!!

Butterflies
By the end of the day Friday we still had no butterflies. Some rooms had a few hatch so we were hoping we would be lucky enough to see them emerge from their chrysalis. Maybe Monday we will have some.

Week of April 26th, 2010

2010-04-22T08:41:00.000-07:00

We will be reading the story Thundercake. This is a realistic story about a girl who is afraid of thunderstorms. The author is Patricia Polacco, one of our authors from first grade and one of my personal favorites.

We will concentrate on the comprehension strategy of sequencing events.

Our vocabulary words are: bolt, horizon, lightning, rumbled, thunder, weather, clap, cooed, stammered, crowed, penned, and samovar.

The phonics skills we will cover are -ed and -ing endings and the silent consonants gh, k(n), and b.

Our grammar lessons will talk about the verbs is/are and was/were.

We will also be discussing how to write a dialogue.

Science
Our caterpillars have turned into a chrysalis. It is very exciting. We have moved them to thier butterfly garden and will now wait patiently for them to emerge as adult butterflies. We have determined that Painted Ladies and Monarchs are different butterflies. We have Painted Ladies in our room. Either way it will be exciting to watch them hatch!

Thursday, April 29th Spring Open House and Book Fair
Sunday, May 2nd Family Fishing Day
Friday, May 14th Early Dismissal
Monday, May 31st No School, Memorial Day

Friday, May 28th School Picnic
Wednesday, June 2nd Last Day of School (One Hour)

Elizabeth Ide Open House
Hope to see all of you Thursday night!
(6:30 to 8:00)

Math
We are working on fractions. We have taken our April math fact test so check your child's progress when he brings his home this week.

Week of April 19th, 2010

2010-04-13T09:28:00.000-07:00

The Week Ahead
On Monday and Tuesday we will be doing OLSAT testing. During the week we will also be sharing our animal reports instead of doing a normal reading lesson. Thursday is early dismissal so the children will get on the bus at noon.

Animal Reports
The children worked very hard to complete their animals reports last week. We will be sharing the reports with each other during the week. These reports will be placed in their reading folders which will follow them to Prairieview.

Science
We will continue to observe the development of our butterflies. We have done several projects related to butterflies that you will be able to see at our spring Open House on Thursday April 29th.
We have received several posters and they are very well done. They look beautiful hanging outside our rooms. Remember they are due on Tuesday.

Open House
Be sure to mark your calendars for the annual Open House. Your children have worked hard preparing material for you to see. We also hope you will support the book fair which directly benefits the children at Ide.

Week of April 12, 2010

2010-04-07T08:47:00.000-07:00

Expository Writing
We will not be reading a story. We will concentrate on expository writing and our animal reports. We will use the information that the students gathered about an animal from the rain forest, ocean, or desert and attempt to write a five paragraph essay.

Remember their animal posters are due on Tuesday, April 20th.

Math
We are working on measurement using inches, feet and yards. If you don't have a ruler for your child at home this would be a good time to purchase one.

Dates to Remember
Thursday, April 22nd, Early Dismissal
Thursday, April 29th, Spring Open House and Book Fair

Friday, May 14th, Early Dismissal
Friday, May 28th, Ide School Picnic
Monday, May 31, No School, Memorial Day
Wednesday, June 2nd, Last Day of School, Dismissal at 10 a.m.

Science
We have started learning about butterflies. We have discussed life cycle, habitat, self-defense tactics, metamorphosis, and migration. We have caterpillars in our classroom and we will record our observations each day.

Thank you to those who sent in glue sticks! If you haven't sent any yet we could still use more.

Week of April 5th, 2010

2010-03-24T09:30:00.000-07:00

Enjoy the Break.

Reading
When we return from Spring Break our story will be Carousel.

In Phonics we will cover the sound of y at the end of longer words. We will also talk about the prefix -un.

Our Comprehension strategy will be making judgements.

The Vocabulary words will be: angry, fussed, groaned, grumbled, grumpily, promised, frothy, tutu, mane, and trot.

In the Grammar lessons we will discuss past tense of verbs.

Rain Forest Unit
All of you should have seen the letters regarding the rain forest unit we will be starting upon our return from Spring Break. Please assist your child by helping them research their animals and make their posters. However, it is important that they do as much of the work as possible by themselves. They are earning the grade, not you. The posters and their reports will be available for viewing at the Open House on April 29th.

Life Touch Portraits
If you have not returned your child's pictures or the money for the pictures please do so as soon as possible.

Dates to Remember
Monday, March 29th, Spring Break Begins
Monday, March 5th, Classes Resume
Tuesday, April 20th, Animal Posters Due
Thursday, April 22nd, Early Dismissal
Thursday, April 29th, Open House

Math
We will begin a new chapter when we return on April 5th. This chapter will be about measurement.
All of you should have seen the results of the timed fact tests. some kids improved, some didn't. Remember to keep practicing if your child didn't.

Reading Logs
March is the last month for Pizza Hut coupons. However, we will continue to use the reading logs for the rest of the year. Hopefully, reading has become something your child enjoys and they no longer need to be rewarded to do it.

IOWA Tests
The IOWA test results have come in and will be sent to you in your child's final report card envelope. If you would like the results sooner, please send in a self-addressed stamped envelope or stop in the office and request them.

Student of the Week
Jacksen was the special student. Jacksen has one sister. He likes porcupines, the color blue and eating cheese. At school he likes gym and at home he likes cooking and playing on the computer. Jacksen thinks it is super-cool that he was an extra in a movie. When Jacksen grows up he wants to work in Chicago.

Week of March 22nd, 2010

2010-03-17T13:17:00.000-07:00

Reading
Next week we will be reading Jalapeno Bagels, a story about a boy named Pablo who spends and early morning at his parents' bakery. Pablo needs to decide which bread he will bring to school for International Day. He chooses one that shows his Mexican-Jewish-American heritage.

Math
We will continue to work on geometric figures. The chapter test will be Thursday. We will also be doing timed math fact tests this week.

Student of the Week
Haroon was our special student. Haroon has 2 older brothers and 1older sister. He likes to play outside. His favorite sport is basketball. When Haroon grows up he would like to be a basketball player.

Iditarod Race

The first musher to finish was Lance Mackey. This is his fourth consecutive win. this has never happen before in the history of the race. Another interesting fact about Lance is that both his father (in 1983) and grandfather (in 1978) have won the Iditarod. The musher we were following closely was Jessie Royer and she finished 15th. She was the first woman to finish the race this year. There are still mushers on the trail and the race is not over until the "Red Lantern" is given to the last one into Nome.

Spring Break
Our break begins Friday, March 26th. We return to school on Monday, April 5th. I hope all of you enjoy the break.

Week of March 15th, 2010

2010-03-10T09:38:00.000-08:00

Writing Workshop

We will have a reading/writing workshop that focuses on writing a personal narrative. Your child will choose a topic, write an introduction, beginning, middle, end and conclusion. We will concentrate on adding interesting details. We will revise our narrative and then write a final copy.

Math
We completed chapter 13 on solid geometric shapes and began the next chapter on plane geometric shapes. They will bring home their test on Monday.

Student of the Week
Nick was the special student this week. Nick has one brother. He also has a dog named Rosie. Nick likes the color red, eating green apples, playing football and building with Legos. He enjoys learning about history. When Nick grow up he wants to be a football player.

The Iditarod
We have been following the progress of the sled dog teams across Alaska. They have reached the half way point. Our special racer, Jessie Royer,is currently in 28th place. I am hoping she is holding back for a big finish. I haven't seen much information on television but I will keep checking and let them know if there is going to be any special about the race.

Week of March 8th, 2010

2010-03-03T07:15:00.000-08:00

Reading
Our story for reading next week is Brothers and Sisters. We will hear from a variety of brothers and sisters talk about their families.

Phonics will cover the -er ending in two syllable words.

Making Generalizations will be our Comprehension Strategy.

The Vocabulary Words are: newborn, distract, twins, pest, teenage.

Our Grammar Lesson will discuss verbs.

The Iditarod
On Saturday, March 6th the 38th Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race will begin. This race was started in 1972 to commemorate the 1925 life saving race in Alaska from Anchorage to Nome to bring diphtheria serum to the villagers in Nome. Today's race follows some of the same route used by the serum run mushers, along the historic Iditarod Trial. At over 1,000 miles it is the longest sled dog race in the world. Just finishing the race is considered a great accomplishment. We will be following the race throughout its 7 to 14 day run. Our goal is to reinforce the concept of setting a goal and accomplishing it no matter how difficult. In the process we will learn about Alaska and the unique people who live there.

Report Cards
Your child will bring home their report cards on Tuesday. Please sign the envelope and return just the envelope to school.

Conferences
Parent/Teacher conferences are this week. Please do your best to keep your scheduled appointment.

Math
We are still working on solid geometric figures. As you should have noticed from the test that went home last week some of the children need to review the math facts. In addition to the facts remember to keep reviewing money and time at home.

Field Trip
Our trip is scheduled for Tuesday. Thank you all for returning the permission slips.

There is no school on Friday, March 12th.

March 1st, 2010

2010-02-23T13:49:00.000-08:00

It's March!

Reading
We will be reading The Great Ball Game. In this story two groups agree to play a ball game to end a quarrel. Both groups agree that the winners may set a penalty that the losers must accept.

The Comprehension Strategy we will work on is summarizing.
The Comprehension Skill is cause and effect.

The Vocabulary Words are: accept, advantage, argument, penalty, quarrel.

The Grammar Lessons will focus on possessive nouns and improving writing.

In Phonics we will work on vowel pairs oa, and ow.

Field Trip

Our trip is March 9th. Don't forget to send in the permission slip and money.

Conference Notes
Conference notes were sent home Friday in their green folders. Please complete your portion and return as soon as possible.

Math
The final test for chapter 13 was given Thursday. We will begin chapter 14 on Tuesday. We will be covering geometric shapes.

We also took timed addition and subtraction tests which went home on Thursday and Friday. Most of them improved. Those that didn't at least stayed the same.

Student of the Week
Our special student was Madison. She has one little sister in kindergarten. Madison's favorite color is silver, she likes tigers and lions, and enjoys sushi and reading. The sports she likes are soccer and volleyball. At home she likes playing monopoly and being with her friends. Madison wants to be a paleontologist when she grow up.

Week of February 22nd, 2010

2010-02-17T09:34:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember
Thursday, Feb., 25th, Picture Day
Saturday, Feb., 27th, Snowflake Ball
Monday, March 1st, No School
Tuesday, March 9th, Field Trip and Report Cards

Friday, March 12th, No School
Friday, March 19th, Movie Night
Friday, March 30th, Spring Break Begins
Monday, April 6th, Return to School

Reading
We will have our theme review for "Amazing Animals". We will also compare fiction and non-fiction stories about dinosaurs.

The Comprehension Strategy we will focus on is questioning.

The Vocabulary Words are disaster, earthquake, erupting, lava, pitch, volcano, allergic, and rumblings.

In Phonics we will cover words with nd, nt, mp, and nk. We will be reviewing the vowel pairs oa and ow.

Possessive nouns will be the focus of our Grammar lessons.

Math
We will be continuing to work on telling time. The chapter test will be on Thursday.
We have been doing math stations on Fridays with Mrs. Onorato's class. We think they are going well. Hopefully the children are enjoying this activity.

Student of the Week
Peter was our special student this week. Peter has twin brothers in 4th grade. He likes the color blue, dogs, eating salmon, playing soccer, reading Magic Tree House books and building with Legos. A cool fact about Peter is that he thinks he is lucky....so do I. Peter isn't sure what he really want to be when he grows up but for now he thinks cowboy sounds good.

Field Trip
On Tuesday, March 9th we will be going to the College of DuPage to see the play Strega Nona. If you have not already returned the permission slip and $7.00 fee please do so by March 2nd.

February reading logs can be turned in on March 2nd.

Week of February 15th, 2010

2010-02-09T07:14:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day

Reading
We will be reading a nonfiction story that examines the physical characteristics, life cycle, and natural habitat of various types of ants.
We will concentrate on the comprehension strategies of text organization and questioning.

The vocabulary words are: antennae, cocoons, colonies, fungus, larvae, tunnels, parasol, and aphids.
Phonics skills will cover words with nd, nt, mp, ng, and nk.
We will also, look at adding endings to nouns (-s, -es, -ies).

Math
We have finished our chapter on money. The test was Friday so it will come home next week. We are on to time. Keep reviewing money but add time to the list. Also, don't forget the math facts:)

Washington and Lincoln
The children shared their information about Lincoln with Mrs. Onorato's class and they shared theirs about Washington. We made pictures of Abraham and hung them in the hall. They did an excellent job of gathering and recording information about Mr. Lincoln.

Student of the Week
Brennan was the special student. He has one little sister. Brennan likes the color blue, turtles, dogs, and cookies. His favorite sport is baseball but he also enjoys soccer and football. He likes playing with his friends and playing the wii. He is proud of himself because he always tries his best and he is always nice to everyone. When Brennan grow up he want to be a baseball player.

Valentine's Party
Our party was great!! I am so fortunate to have such wonderful party planners. I really appreciate all the work that goes into our parties. The kids really enjoy them and always have such a good time. It is hard to believe this is our last party of the year. Thank you to Mrs. Burrows who was the coordinator of this party and to her helpers, Mrs. Callaghan, Mrs. Mitchell, Mrs. Topp and Mrs. Rodden.

Week of February 8th, 2010

2010-02-01T08:39:00.000-08:00

"Have a Heart...Lend a Can"
Remember to send your donation for the Woodridge Community Pantry. Our goal is 100 items in honor of 1ooth day. At the end of the day on Friday we had 39 items:).

Monday, February 8th will be our 100th day of school.

IOWA Tests of Basic Skills
We will be taking the IOWA tests from Feb. 8th to the 11th. The best way to prepare your child is to give them a good breakfast that includes some protein. If your child is sick, please keep them home. There will be an opportunity to take make-ups.

Valentines's Day Party
Our party will be on Friday, February 12, 2010. The children are allowed to bring cards only. No food items can be brought to school by the children. They will have treats at the party. The party starts at 2:00 and end at 3:10.

Student of the Week
Our special student this week was Abbie. Abbie has a twin brother in Mrs. Onorato's room and two older sisters. Abbie likes the color pink, dogs and eating steak. Her favorite sport is soccer. At school she likes computers and playing outside. She is really excited about being a cheerleader. Abby likes that she has a big family. When Abbie grows up she want to be a scientist.

Presidents Washington and Lincoln
Our class will be learning about Abraham Lincoln. We will read a variety of biographies about the 16th president, see a video and make a timeline. Mrs. Onorato's class will do the same for George Washington. We will then give each child a partner and they will share their information with each other.

Thank you to everyone who sent in money for the earthquake victims in Haiti. Our school collected $1,482.97!!!!

Week of February 1st, 2010

2010-01-26T09:39:00.000-08:00

President's Day, February 15th

In reading we will have our next Reading/Writing Workshop focussing on narratives. We will do some research and write a biography.

Math
We are doing well counting money. Thank you to those of you who have been practicing at home with your children. We finished chapter 11 and will have the test Monday. Chapter 12 continues to review this concept so there is plenty of time to keep practicing. Again, don't forget the math facts. They need to keep practicing those, too.

Student of the Week
Carson was our special student. Carson has one older sister. Carson likes the color blue, dogs, cookies, playing soccer and video games, and recess. Carson is proud of the fact that he is a good soccer player. He is also a good hugger and really enjoys giving out hugs. When Carson grows up he would like to be an athlete.

Dates to Remember

Tuesday, February 2nd, No School, Election Day and Teacher Institute
Friday, February 12th, Valentine's Day Party
Monday, February 15th, No School, President's Day
Monday, March 1st, No School, C. Pulaski Day
Tuesday, March 9th, Report Cards Go Home
Friday, March 12th, No School, Parent/Teacher Conferences

"Have a Heart...Lend A Can"

The Woodridge Community Pantry needs our help! They need to replenish their supply of items that are needed by members of the community. Some of these items include white rice, baby food, diapers, deodorant, and disposable razors. Any nonperishable food item is also welcome.

Week of January 25th, 2010

2010-01-20T09:34:00.000-08:00

Reading
We will start Theme 4 in our series which is entitled Amazing Animals.

The first story in the theme is a humorous story about a policeman who loves to give safety tips to school children,a but no one ever listens......until he brings a dog named Gloria.

The comprehension strategies we will cover are monitoring and clarifying, fantasy and realism, and cause and effect.

The vocabulary words for the week are accident, attention, audience, commands, officer, safety.

The phonics skills will cover the r-controlled vowels of ar, or, ore, and the syllables -tion and -ture.

Math
We will be working on money. Practice at home by giving them change to count. If they can handle dollar bill add that to the pile. Also, have them "make change" for you.
Don't forget to keep reviewing the math facts. The latest timed test came home in their folders Friday.

Crystals
We have been looking at crystal. Each child had the opportunity to create their own crystal. The last group did theirs on Friday so they will bring it home on Monday. Be sure to take the time to look at them. They really look cool! Some of the children expressed an interest in repeating the activity at home so I will send the directions in the green folders on Monday.

Student of the Week
Lorin was our special student this week. He has a sister who is almost 4 years old. Lorin likes the color blue, fish, soccer and playing with his cousins. His favorite book is The Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Lorin likes being tall and is very proud of the fact that he can speak Croatian. When Lorin grows up he would like to own an ice cream store.

I have no more completed posters for special student. If your child has not completed his and returned it to school please do so as soon as possible.