Week 24

Dear Parents,

   This week in math we practiced solving both addition and subtraction problems with and without regrouping. Most of the children are very competent at being able to switch from addition to subtraction and remembering what to do. There are still a few children that know the steps , but will add when it is a subtraction problem or subtract when it is an addition problem. If the whole page is one type of problem they do well. Please work with your child at home to make sure they can easily switch from one to the other. This is perhaps the most difficult skill learned in second grade math. This also sets the foundation for their success next year.

   In reading we learned the intermediate directions of the compass rose. We learned about some famous Americans, researched their lives and decided the two most important things five famous Americans did to create a brochure. Researching and synthesizing the information was interesting and fun!

   In Language we learned about adverbs and finished up our class research paper on Helen Keller. We were inspired by her life and her message which was never let anything stop you! We are moving right along in learning how to write in cursive. They are enjoying the new handwriting books which have QR codes on each page which connects you to a short video that shows the correct way to form each letter.

    In science we began our unit on weather. We started a chart where we track the weather ( temperature, wind direction, cloud cover and precipitation) for ten days. When we are finished we will look for patterns that may help us predict the weather. We saw a video showing what a meteorologist does. The children were amazed that a meteorologist looks at 19 different computers before he puts together a forecast for the daily news. We are discussing how weather affects what we wear, do, and may change the transportation we choose to use.