http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/ en Copyright 2010 Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:53:38 -0600 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Hello Parents, Thank you for all the delicious Valentine's treats; I enjoyed way too many of them!Some of the boxes and bags arrived on my desk without a student's name, so I apologize if I overlooked thanking anyone. Well, February brings us into the season of Lent, which we have begun to discuss in class. In our classroom, we will be learning about all aspects of Lent through the Easter Triduum. Prior to Easter break, the second grade students will have the opportunity to observe the dress rehearsal for the presentation of the Living Stations of the Cross, which is acted out by the older students. Just recently, the students' 8th grade Sacramental Buddies walked the 2nd graders through the church showing and explaining each station to them. In English, we just completed a short study of poetry. After brainstorming for rhyming ideas, the students worked with a partner to create an original poem. We then typed our poems in Computer Class, illustrated them and compiled them into a book. We'll all be taking a turn bringing this book home. To note...I am not an advocate of continually working on workbook pages and worksheets. These items do have their place in the classroom but, do not serve all purposes. I may choose to practice skills and concepts in a different way that may be more interesting and creative for the students. Following is an example of an activity we are doing in class to make the study of adjectives more interesting and meaningful to the students: To understand why we use adjectives in our writing, we looked at some advertisements. We looked for adjectives that describe the product in the ad. We then talked about how the adjectives encourage us to purchase a product by making the product sound appealing. We are then going to create our own advertisements using creative adjectives. We'll then have these laminated so that they look professional, just like an ad in a magazine! Hopefully, Spring will come a little early. I think we all have a case of cabin fever after being inside for so long during this harsh winter... Until next time, Miss Anderson l http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2010/02/february_into_march.html http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2010/02/february_into_march.html Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:53:38 -0600 Hello Parents, Here we are halfway through the year. As the third quarter begins, we have transitioned to our vocabulary based Spelling workbook: Vocabulary Workshop. We will take 2 weeks to complete each unit. Every other Friday we will have 2 tests on these words: one will be a spelling test, the other will be a vocabulary test. Each time we begin a new unit you will receive the list of words to keep at home. I will also send the workbook home before the test for review. Since we will be studying the meaning of each word, it will make sense to practice using the words in sentences. This also helps to reinforce our sentence structure. I will send home a survey with 3 choices of writing levels for this activity. I will make my recommendation for your child and you may fill in what you feel is appropriate. We'll take it from there. Also, our first "project" will be coming up soon. It will be a (short) book report in which we pull together Language Arts concepts we have been working on. More info. on this will go home at a future date. Finally, many of the students are running low on their supplies. It really impedes their progress in class when they don't have pencils, sharpeners, erasers & etc. Could you please check with your child to see what he or she needs? Thankyou, Miss Anderson http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2010/01/januarys_info.html http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2010/01/januarys_info.html Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:53:00 -0600 Hello Parents, After we return from the Christmas Break the end of the second quarter will be approaching and the 3rd quarter will be bringing some changes to our classroom activities. So far, we have been diligently working on building our basic skills. I will now begin introducing some assignments and projects that are a little more sophisticated than our usual homework. Look for "Project Alerts" to begin coming home in your child's folder into the 3rd quarter. We will soon begin our study of cursive. In Math we'll begin double digit computation. Also, our spelling focus will change from a phonetic based list to a vocabulary builder list. After our Geology Unit in Science, we'll cover a Biology Unit as well as an Astronomy Unit. Social Studies will bring 2 more units of study also...one Community based and the other History based. More specifics will be coming in January. I hope the upcoming Christmas Break will provide your family with time for rest and relaxation. May the New Year bring your families joy, health and for our world, new found peace and prosperity. Sincerely, Miss Anderson http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/12/decembers_notes.html http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/12/decembers_notes.html Sun, 13 Dec 2009 14:22:41 -0600 Hello Parents, I'd like to update you on our progress in Religion... We have begun our "formal" study and preparation for First Reconciliation. I am aware that Ms. Cheryl Antos provides materials for your family to help prepare for this event at home. It is the philosophy of the Archdiocese that parents are the first teachers of their children. Therefore, over the past few years the parents have been asked to be more directly involved in the Sacramental preparation of their children. In the classroom we study and prepare as well. Chapter 6 in our Religion workbook is the "meat and potatoes" section for corresponding vocabulary and concepts understanding. In the classroom I practice the actual steps of Reconciliation with the students. If you are able, practicing these steps at home also helps. The more prepared the students are, the less they feel nervous that they may forget something. Since we are on the topic of our Sacraments... Perhaps by now, you may have heard your child talk about their Sacramental Buddy. This is a program established to provide the 2nd grade students with an experienced guide to help them better understand their Faith. The 8th grade students act as role models for the younger students. We usually meet about once a month to work together on activities. Our first meeting was about 1 month ago. We worked on becoming acquainted with each other. We also took photographs with our buddies. These will be coming home soon. Next, we'll be getting together to work on a Thanksgiving activity. Although it is always nice to appreciate the friendship that develops between the buddies, please keep in mind not to send your child to school with " a little something extra" for their buddy . . . hurt feelings can arise so easily in other students. I hope the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday brings you the opportunity to spend relaxing time with friends and family. May God bless and protect all those we know who keep our families and country safe . . . Sincerely, Miss Anderson http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/11/novembers_news.html http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/11/novembers_news.html Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:49:41 -0600 Hello Parents, In this communication I would like to keep you current with some of the activities we're doing in the classroom: So you are aware... During the first half of the year our Spelling words will be phonetically based. This means they will follow a phonetic spelling pattern and will coordinate with the sounds we are concentrating on in Phonics for that week. Thus the reason for our current Spelling lists being labelled the Phonics/Spelling Word List. You may also discover that as you read the first Reading story for each week that you will find many words with our weekly phonics sounds in the text. Early Childhood theory (which 2nd grade is a part of) supports that this practice reinforces the connection between reading, phonics and spelling; building more proficient readers who are able to decode and spell new words on a more independent basis. Our current spelling lists usually contain 12 words. If you would like for your child to be challenged by more difficult words that follow the weekly pattern we are studying - please let me know by filling out the form I'll be sending home. I will then accommodate the list to meet his/her needs. If you feel the current lists have been appropriate for your child's level, then let me know that on the form also. To take note of - the grades for the Spelling tests and Phonics quizzes will be combined under the heading Spelling/Phonics on the report card. However, so you are aware, our spelling focus will change mid-year with the introduction of our Vocabulary Workshop Series. One of the activities we did recently in class to reinforce the phonetic / spelling connection between words was to create tongue twisters with words that begin with the sh, ch, th and wh combinations. The students worked in groups and came up with some creative ideas! We will soon type our tongue twisters in Computer Class With Mrs. Rosellini. The students are currently illustrating their pages. We will then have them laminated and turn them into a book. It will be coming to a home near you soon! Enjoy reading them with your family. Until next time... Miss Anderson http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/09/october_update.html http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/09/october_update.html Tue, 29 Sep 2009 18:19:02 -0600 sfreading.com Math - MacMillan/McGraw-Hill = mmhmath.com Religion - Silver Burdett Ginn = blestarewe.com Social Studies - Scott Forseman = sfsocialstudies.com Science - Scott Forseman = sfscience.com Until October... Miss Anderson]]> http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/09/ushering_in_the_new_school_yea.html http://www.stlblog.org/randerson/2009/09/ushering_in_the_new_school_yea.html Sat, 05 Sep 2009 20:00:49 -0600