About Me

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Carrollton, Texas, United States
Welcome to my blog! My name is Beth Carpenter! I am a 2nd grade teacher at Coyote Ridge Elementary. I majored in Early Childhood Education and have taught for 22 years. I have taught grades K- 3 which gives me a unique ability to know where my second graders fit within those grades. Teaching is more than a profession to me, it is a calling. I love to help light the fire of curiosity to help all my students become lifelong learners!

Schedule

Math 8:00-9:30 Brain Break 9:30-9:40 Enrichment 9:40-10:30 Guided Reading 10:30-11:30 Lunch 11:30-12:00 Writer's Workshop 12:00- 1:00 Recess 1:00-1:30 Reading/Social Studies 1:30-2:00 Science 2:00-2:50 Pack/Stack/Dismiss 2:50-3:00

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

The Winter Party was a success!









Week 16

Dear Parents,
           This week in math we continued working on subtracting three digit numbers with regrouping. We also are working on solving two step problems. An example will go home in your child’s coyote folder on Thursday. A homework page with two step problems went home on Monday. We will review after break for a couple days, then take our assessment over these types of problems.
          In writing we created a paper snow man, then wrote a past tense paper about how we made that snowman. We wrote in the present tense in our journal as well in the future tense as we guessed what we all will be doing over winter break. We learned that in our writing we should pick a verb tense and be consistent throughout the writing by sticking with whatever tense we start with.
         In reading we read holiday books, worked on comprehension activities, wrote off the books, and created art work to go along with each of them. We had pajama day on Tuesday , had hot chocolate, a gingerbread man and watched the Polar Express. If you got to come to our holiday party, the halls were decked with your children’s hard work. Our room mothers Tennille Massingale and Anam Rajappa did a wonderful job buying all the supplies, decorating our room, providing engaging activities that were so much fun and made your child’s winter party something to be remembered. All their hard work is greatly appreciated. Check out our blog to see some pictures of the fun!
          In Science we observed, sorted and learned about all types of rocks. We recorded our observations about our pet rock. Thank you for sending in a rock or two for your child’s science activity. Partnering with me in your child’s education makes all the difference!  
         In social studies we reflected on our leadership notebook and finished up some unfinished habit practice sheets. We have  our annual sing a long on Thursday. Don't
I forget Thursday is also an early release day!  Students are released at 11:45. We recommend packing on this day as it will be difficult to get the whole school through the lunch line in such a short time span. 


        I hope you all have much fun, love, and perhaps a little rest over the Winter Break with your friends, family and loved ones! I truly appreciate all the wonderful cards with your kind messages, as well as your thoughtful gifts. It is my pleasure to guide your sweet children each day. That is the greatest gift of all.

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Week 15

Dear Parents,
           We began three digit subtraction with regrouping. The class did well overall switching back to subtraction after doing two weeks of addition. It has helped that they are learning their subtraction facts and recording it in their math logs. Thank you for all your help at home. I am seeing a big difference in the time it takes for them to figure out the problems.
           In language we wrote a winter acrostic and used the computer to type it out, using various fonts of different sizes and inserting, as well as sizing, the picture to wrap around the text. We also wrote a poem about saying goodbye to Fall and hello to Winter. We learned that creativity is a leadership skill! We also had fun turning a scribbled line into a picture, then writing about it.
           In reading we compared two Gingerbread Man Stories. We looked at their story structures to see how they were alike and different. We began reading holiday books as a book a day for five days. This will finish up next week.
          In Science we had several discovery lessons where children could observe objects to see if they spin, roll, or slide. We sorted objects according to their movement. We finished up the unit with an assessment on Thursday. Next up: Rocks! We began the unit by sorting the rocks we brought in on Friday.
           In Social studies we continued with our Leader in me activities by using our creativity to make a picture out of a squiggle line. We also gave affirmations to our classmates. We all feel good when we celebrate the gifts those around us have! We are thinking Win-Win! Our new Leader of the Week is Julian!

Friday, December 8, 2017

Last Weeks Leader of the Week: Chace


STEM night was a success! Look at all the amazing builders!








Today was twin Day! I can't tell them apart!


Week 14

Dear Parents,
               In math we worked all week on three digit addition with regrouping. We took our test on Friday. Next week we will be moving into three digit subtraction with regrouping. I will be sending homework pages home to practice this new skill.
               In writing we continued filling in our multi-flow map for our “Why” expository writing. We edited and revised our writing and took it to final copy! It is wonderful to read why your children like their favorite holiday. Many of the reasons are because it is a memorable time with family!
               In reading we read the story “Teacher’s Pets.” We have a classroom pet which is a stuffed coyote. The children are looking for leadership qualities in each other and passing it on to spend a day on the desk of an exemplary leader. We have a traveling pet, yet to be named which is a stuffed dog. He is traveling home with students to stay over night for three nights (may be more if over a weekend). If your child brings home our traveling pet, he/she is to write about his/her time with our class pet. Feel free to take pictures of your child and our pet to be printed off and glued in the journal which travels with it.If you cannot print it at home feel free to text me the pictures at 972-896-3123 and I will print them for you. Please help out by making sure our pet, his bed, blanket, food dish and water bowl get returned to school for the next child to take home. I hope you enjoy this project as the children are very excited. I’d love for them to get excited about writing! It will also be fun for them to read the adventures our puppy has at other homes.
              In science we continued to learn about force and motion, As we watched content videos, read and wrote about this topic. We even tried to make our own roller coaster as we talked about the speed on different parts of the track was directly related to the height of the hills.
                In social Studies we talked about apologizing, doing our best work as well as creativity. I love hearing the children discuss these important topics! They are growing as leaders!
                
 * Please send in your donation of $3.00 to cover the cost of  supplies for the snack, a craft, and game child at the holiday party! (We need three more) 


* Please send in a full, white roll of toilet paper so your child can make a snowman pencil holder which will be left on his/her desk in December and January. (We need three more)

Friday, December 1, 2017

Week 13

Dear Parents,
        The week started off a bit slow as your little ones came back a bit sleepy on Monday, but soon they got back into the school routine. We finished our Math unit on ordering numbers on an open number line and using our greater than, less than, or equal to signs to compare two numbers. On Thursday we began three digit addition with regrouping. It is much harder than our two digit addition problems that we did earlier in the year, so I will be sending some homework home for extra practice.
        In writing we started an expository writing on “why” we like a holiday chosen from our circle map of all our brainstormed holidays. We used thinking maps, a multi-flow map to organize our thoughts. Next week we will take our piece through the writing process.
        In reading we read a narrative nonfiction story called goat in the rug. We learned how details are woven together to help us make a conclusion as we wove our own mats. We learned about Window Rock, Arizona and learned which states border it. We took our comprehension check and answered questions by using text evidence.
        In science we finished up our unit on magnets and started talking about force as  motion. We made a marble painting by  using many different kinds of motions that were pushes and pulls which caused a paint covered marble to paint its path on our paper. We had motion stations where we observed and recorded our observations of objects, spinning, sliding and rolling.
       In Social Studies we continued on with our last of the seven habits. We learned to sharpen our brains and our hearts! We learned that taking care of ourselves is called Sharpening the Saw. When we are happy and healthy, we can be our best.
        Congratulations to our new Leader of the Week, Chace Hunsperger!

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Kenji is our leader of the week!


We sang to our veterans!


Martha MacKenzie is a veteran!



Chace reading his letter to the veterans!


Week 12

Dear Parents,
           In math we went back to place value. We had fun building our numbers to 999 with place value blocks as well as cheese-it squares for hundreds, pretzel sticks for tens, and marshmallows for ones. Thank you to the parents who donated these items so that we could build our tasty numbers!
           In language we finished up writing our “How to Bake a Thanksgiving Turkey” papers and made them into special  keepsakes to take home for Thanksgiving break.
           In reading we listened to five different Thanksgiving stories and worked on activities that helped us understand each book a little better. We answered comprehension questions, listed our story elements (setting characters, problem/ solution), wrote reading responses, practiced using our adjectives to describe a character, and sorted facts about Native Americans as well as used our map skills to find out where they used to live.
        In science we began our unit on forces, pushing and pulling. We had several hands on experiences with magnets and even saw how a magnet could make a machine work. 
       In social studies we continued learning our Leader in Me Habits. We are learning to synergies while we celebrate our likenesses and differences. We learned to use our strengths and work together. Humility and teamwork were key words in our discussions.
        I hope you all have a wonderful break! I look forward to seeing your children back at school on November 27th!
* Check out our blog by clicking the link in my signature line to see our Veterans Day Assembly. Chase read his friendly letter to the veterans to represent the whole second grade! Congratulations to Kenji who is our new leader of the week!

Thursday, November 9, 2017

Week 11

Dear Parents,
      Wow! I can’t believe the first nine weeks is over and we are a week into our second nine weeks! Math has been a struggle. Addition and subtraction with regrouping is perhaps the most challenging unit that second graders learn. Please continue to reinforce these skills at home. We finished up our week by taking a performance assessment. Next unit we will continue our focus on place value. We look forward to starting it next week.
       In writing we learned about time order words and used them in a few “How To” writings. ( How to Blow out a Birthday Candle, How to make and eat a Rootbeer Float, and How to Bake a Thanksgiving Turkey. Thank you to Mrs. MacKenzie for helping us with our keepsake Thanksgiving placemats and serving us our rooter floats!
        In reading we continued working on our nonfiction feature books, learned about the 50's for the 50th day of school and compared life then to life now. We also read a Scholastic News about Veteran’s Day! We gave our letters we wrote last week to the veterans who are coming to Coyote Ridge tomorrow for our assembly. Please come to join us if you can! We are to wear white shirts tomorrow.
        In science we finished up our unit on Energy: Light, Heat and Sound. We took our assessment.
        In social studies we revisited our Leader in Me habits that we have focused on so far. We have great leaders in the making in our classroom! 
        

Thursday, November 2, 2017

Week 10

Dear Parents,
              This week in math we switched over to subtraction. We are learning our subtraction fast facts taking away zero. We are subtracting two digit numbers with and without regrouping. This switch from addition to subtraction is hard for second graders. Continue to challenge them to add as well. We will  be helping them switch back and forth until it is reinforced and no longer hard to know the process.
              In writing we are learning to write a friendly letter. We are writing to a Veteran. Their original letter will be given to a Veteran on Veteran’s Day, but I will make a copy to grade and save for our portfolio.
              In reading we are learning about nonfiction text features. We are creating a book that tells the purpose of these features and shows examples. They are enjoying creating these books.
              In science we have begun our unit on energy: Light, Heat, and Sound. We will be doing investigations where these types of energy will be increased and decreased. We will be making predictions and then record what we find in our science  notebooks. On Tuesday we took a break from this unit to do a pumpkin investigation. The children estimated the circumference, weight and number of seeds and then we checked our pumpkin to see how close we got to our estimate. They loved digging into the gooey pumpkin!
               In Leader and Me we discussed the importance of honesty, even when it feels hard to do. We talked about public speaking and the importance of speaking clearly. Congratulations to our new leader of the week, Elwin Thomas! 

Thursday, October 26, 2017

Building Day!











Week 9

Dear Parents,
        We are moving forward in our problem solving strategies with number talks and word problems. Our word problems have two digit numbers that we add together with and without regrouping. We are able to use a strip diagram (a part/part/whole box to help us see what the  word problem is asking us to do.
         In language we discovered that there are four types of sentences: statements, questions, exclamations, and commands. We used which punctuation marks go with these sentences. We were challenged to use all four in a writing piece on a topic of their choice. 
          In reading we read the Signmaker’s Assistant. We looked at the clues in the illustrations and in the text to use as evidence to decide what type of community was the setting of this story. We also used text evidence to take a comprehension check. W e used some of our reading time to plan our communities with our groups.
            In science we learned that physical properties of matter can be changed by cutting, folding, tearing, sanding and combining different types of matter. We learned that the properties of matter can be important when choosing building materials. Four groups were challenged to get a cotton ball as high off their desk as possible using, tape, rubber bands, string and either spaghetti or pipe cleaners. All groups were successful raising the cottontail up several centimeters. Congratulations to all groups. 
            In Social Studies we focused on the Leader in Me Habits think win-win and seek first to understand, then be understood. We learned that we all win when we fill each other’s emotional banks. We learned to listen with our eyes, ears, and hearts.
              We had building day on Thursday! What a great time we had working together to see our plans becoming a reality. See our blog for pictures of our communities made with recyclables!