Halloween Fun

The second graders in 2K had lots of Halloween fun last Friday. We started with our school wide parade where we were able to show off our  costumes to all of the parents. Our parade continued through the halls inside so we could see all of the fun costumes the other students were wearing. The fun continued in the afternoon with a fun Halloween party. The children rotated through three stations which consisted of two crafts and Halloween Bingo. Our party was a great success thanks to the parents who planned, organized the activities and volunteered at our party in the afternoon.  Please leave me a comment below telling me about your Halloween. Did you go trick-or- treating? Where did you go? Who did you go with? What was your favorite kind of candy? Did you count  your candy? How many different ways could you sort your candy?

The Giant Pumpkin Comes to Fuller Meadow School

A couple of weeks ago we had a surprise visitor. Mr. Lancaster (Mrs. Lancaster's FIL)  came to school to show us the pumpkin he grew this year for the Topsfield Fair. The 1,954 pound pumpkin was the second place winner at the fair  this year. After the boys and girls had  their picture taken with the giant pumpkin they had a chance to ask Mr. Lancaster some questions about the pumpkin. Be sure to ask your child what they learned about this giant pumpkin. They were amazed. The second graders then wrote a personal narrative story about our surprise visit.

Seasonal Cycle of a Tree

Throughout the year we will be studying the seasonal cycle of the tree. Our first observation was observing a tree during the fall season. We will be observing a tree that we can see from our classroom window. The second graders loved being scientists to record their observations using their magnifying glasses. Each season we will observe and record our observations of our tree, noting how the tree changes each season. 

Massachusetts Science and Technology/Engineering Curriculum Frameworks

• Recognize that plants and animals have life cycles, and that life cycles vary for different living things.
• Recognize changes in appearance that animals and plants go through as the seasons change.
• Name and use simple equipment and tools (e.g., rulers, meter sticks, thermometers, hand lenses, and balances) to gather data and extend the senses
• Record observations and data with pictures, numbers, or written statements.
• Discuss observations with others. 

Billy Miller Padlet

Here is a link to the new padlet for the next part of Billy Miller. It will be fun to read each other's responses.

Padlet for GRA - The Year of Billy Miller

Please add to our classroom Padlet for the Global Read Aloud - The Year of Billy Miller

Created with Padlet

GRA Tweeting and Skyping about Billy Miller

What a fun Friday afternoon we had! First we participated in a Global Twitter Chat about Billy Miller. We all responded to a set of questions about the story. It was so exciting to see what  other classes are thinking about the read aloud. Many students in other classes agreed with what we have been thinking and sharing about Billy Miller in our class. 

Our next exciting activity was skyping with Mrs. Jordan's third graders at Steward School in Topsfield. Each class asked some questions about the story. The  thought provoking questions the students asked each other on the spot without any practicing or rehearsing was quite impressive. Again, it was fun to hear the different answers and thoughts that the second and third graders were able to share with one another. This was the first time many of us have skyped. We are hoping to skype with a class in another state or country next.

                                   
Don't forget to add your ideas to our padlet.

                                      Common Core Standards

Reading Literature
2.1. Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

Speaking and Listening
2.1. Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
2.2. Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.
2.3. Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to clarify comprehension, gather additional information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue.

Yoga with Mrs.Marshall

We have been learning how to calm  our minds and bodies by doing yoga. Mrs.  Marshall has been coming in once a week to teach us some different yoga poses. Ask your child to show you waterfall, warrior, tree, and butterfly. Our favorite pose is our ending pose, the do nothing pose. 

The Year of Billy Miller

So far we have read Chapters 1-3 of The Year of Billy Miller. We learning a lot of things about Billy Miller and his classmates. Please add a note to the padlet (click on the book to get to the padlet) to share your thoughts about the story so far. What do you think will happen to Billy Miller next?

We are reading the next section of The Year of Billy Miller called Father. In this section we are getting to know Billy's father a little better. Click on the book to share your thoughts on the new padlet. What would you say to Billy about his diorama?

Global Read Aloud

Today we are very excited to be starting our Global Read Aloud project. For the next six weeks I will be reading The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes aloud to the students. Many other schools around the globe are reading the same story. We are hoping to make some global connections with other classes around the world. Be sure to ask your child about this exciting project our whole school is participating in. Stay tuned for more information soon. Thank you to Mrs. Baker for bringing this exciting project to Fuller Meadow. Please leave me a comment about what you thought about the first chapter of The  Year of Billy Miller.

Depending on Others

Our  first Social Studies unit is Depending on Others. We brainstormed a class list of people we depend on and why we need these people in our lives. We discovered that some of the people we depend on are people we know and others may be people we don't know but are still people we need in our lives. We hope you enjoy our chatter pix video about the people second graders depend on.

click picture

Essential Question: How do we depend on others?

Show the Number

We have just finished our first Math Unit, Numbers to 1000. We learned how to read and write numbers to 1000. One of the fun activities we did was playing a game called Show the Number. The students used base ten blocks and a place value chart to show their number. Second graders had to write their number in all three forms, standard form, expanded form, and word form. They also compared, ordered, and used 3 digit numbers in patterns.

2. NBT.A 3. Read and write numbers to 1000 using base-ten numerals, number names, and expanded form.