The MUSIC PROGRAM was a lot of fun! Thank you to all of you who came to show your support and watch your adorable children perform. We were not expecting such a wonderful turnout based on what the children told us that day. We were delighted to have more families show up than we predicted! Thank you once again!
This is our last week for the Reading Challenge. I really hope we step up to the challenge and make 80% or better. We haven't made it yet this month, but we keep getting closer! This week has to be our week!!!! You need 175x4 to complete the challenge by Friday. We can do it!
The Penguin/Whale project came home on Friday. I hope you are enjoying the project. The dioramas can start anytime. We are still doing some beginning touches to get your child started in class Tues. and Wed. Beginning Wed. night they should be ready to start writing. The children are so excited about this project. We cannot wait to see them displayed in the hallway during conferences.
Prepare your calendars! Our Valentine's Day party will be on Tuesday, February 14 from 1:15 pm-2:00 pm. During this time we will pass out Valentine's and enjoy some healthy Valentine snacks. Be watching for a donation list and class list coming soon! Please remember to include everyone in our class on your list of Valentine's. There are 24 students in the class. We appreciate your help and donations for all of our celebrations.
Conferences will be held soon February 16 (2pm-9pm) and 17 (8:00am-12:00 pm)! I look forward to this time to share with you the wonderful growth your child has made this year. We continue to work hard toward our reading goals. Please continue to work on basic math facts with flash cards or Xtra Math. We need to improve our speed of our basic facts to help two digit addition go more smoothly. Knowing our basic facts helps make this process easier and quicker, with less frustration. Thank you for your help with this!
Have a wonderful week! Enjoy the time together working on your projects!
Mrs. Montes :)
Monday, January 30, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Music Concert is Tonight!!!
Just a reminder that our Music Concert is tonight at 6:00. Students need to be here at 5:45. Immediately following the concert we will have a 30 minute Family Literacy Night and all the families are welcome to join us! Mrs. Montes
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Tuesday Updates
Winter weather is here! Please be sure to send your child to school in the appropriate snow gear every day. We will be having recess outside if the weather is around 15 degrees or warmer. Please send boots, snow pants, hats and gloves everyday. I recommend getting a large ziploc bag (2 feet XLarge) for their winter gear so it fits in the locker and is easier to transport to and from school. Please empty the bag each night and hang the snow gear up so it can dry out. We don't want to have them coming back to school in cold, wet gear every day.
Second Grade Music Concert is Thursday, January 26. The concert begins at 6:00 pm. Mr. Steuer would like all students performing to be here at 5:45. Students can report to their classrooms. Parents can go into the gym. Immediately following the concert, the second grade teachers will be offering a Family Literacy Night. Ms. Salas and I will be offering a 30 minute literacy activity that you may wish to attend. Ms. Salas will be hosting an activity in Spanish, and I will be hosting an activity in English. Ms. Accomando will be making bookmarks with some families. This is not a conference or a time to discuss your child individually, but a chance to have some fun while integrating literacy.
Penguins- We finished our whale study. Now we are learning about penguins.This unit will go on for 2 weeks. We will not have a spelling or vocab list for next week either since this week will flow into next week. I loved hearing about everything your child taught you about whales. I'm glad we have some whale experts now! They are coming home today to see what you already know about penguins. Hopefully they will have a lot to teach you at the end of this unit also. Thank you to those of you who made comments on our blog or wrote me love notes sharing what you learned. I love when the children share their joy of what they learned.
Mrs. Montes
Second Grade Music Concert is Thursday, January 26. The concert begins at 6:00 pm. Mr. Steuer would like all students performing to be here at 5:45. Students can report to their classrooms. Parents can go into the gym. Immediately following the concert, the second grade teachers will be offering a Family Literacy Night. Ms. Salas and I will be offering a 30 minute literacy activity that you may wish to attend. Ms. Salas will be hosting an activity in Spanish, and I will be hosting an activity in English. Ms. Accomando will be making bookmarks with some families. This is not a conference or a time to discuss your child individually, but a chance to have some fun while integrating literacy.
Penguins- We finished our whale study. Now we are learning about penguins.This unit will go on for 2 weeks. We will not have a spelling or vocab list for next week either since this week will flow into next week. I loved hearing about everything your child taught you about whales. I'm glad we have some whale experts now! They are coming home today to see what you already know about penguins. Hopefully they will have a lot to teach you at the end of this unit also. Thank you to those of you who made comments on our blog or wrote me love notes sharing what you learned. I love when the children share their joy of what they learned.
Mrs. Montes
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Tuesday Updates
Tuesday Updates........ :-)
Young Author's stories were due on Friday, January 13. If you still have those at home, I need them returned no later than Thursday, January 19. They get shipped to the company on Thursday. Parents please be sure to sign the permission slip for parent authorization inside the packet. If you don't plan on completing the book please send it back to school anyway.
Winter weather is here! Please be sure to send your child to school in the appropriate snow gear every day. We will be having recess outside if the weather is 15 degrees or warmer. Please send boots, snow pants, hats and gloves everyday. I recommend getting a large ziploc bag (2 feet XLarge) for their winter gear so it fits in the locker and is easier to transport to and from school. Please empty the bag each night and hang the snow gear up so it can dry out. We don't want to have them coming back to school in cold, wet gear every day.
Second Grade Music Concert is Thursday, January 26. The concert begins at 6:00 pm. Mr. Steuer would like all students performing to be here at 5:45. Students can report to their classrooms. Parents can go into the gym. Immediately following the concert, the second grade teachers will be offering a Family Literacy Night. Ms. Salas and I will be offering a 30 minute literacy activity that you may wish to attend. Ms. Salas will be hosting an activity in Spanish, and I will be hosting an activity in English. You are more than welcome to attend both (15 minutes each) or one of the activities. This is not a conference or a time to discuss your child individually, but a chance to have some fun while integrating literacy.
ACCESS Testing is this week. This is a test for second language learners acquiring English. Therefore, we will not have a spelling and vocab list in English. There will not be a spelling and vocab test in English on Friday either. But we will be having a test on whales and what we've learned about whales over these past 2 weeks. Tuesday's homework was only to read 30 minutes to help give extra time for reading for the reading challenge. Remember, 175 minutes is the minimum amount of minutes required to meet the challenge. If you didn't make it last week you need to have 350 minutes this Friday. I hope we improve from last week! Good luck!!!
Have a great week!
Mrs. Montes
Young Author's stories were due on Friday, January 13. If you still have those at home, I need them returned no later than Thursday, January 19. They get shipped to the company on Thursday. Parents please be sure to sign the permission slip for parent authorization inside the packet. If you don't plan on completing the book please send it back to school anyway.
Winter weather is here! Please be sure to send your child to school in the appropriate snow gear every day. We will be having recess outside if the weather is 15 degrees or warmer. Please send boots, snow pants, hats and gloves everyday. I recommend getting a large ziploc bag (2 feet XLarge) for their winter gear so it fits in the locker and is easier to transport to and from school. Please empty the bag each night and hang the snow gear up so it can dry out. We don't want to have them coming back to school in cold, wet gear every day.
Second Grade Music Concert is Thursday, January 26. The concert begins at 6:00 pm. Mr. Steuer would like all students performing to be here at 5:45. Students can report to their classrooms. Parents can go into the gym. Immediately following the concert, the second grade teachers will be offering a Family Literacy Night. Ms. Salas and I will be offering a 30 minute literacy activity that you may wish to attend. Ms. Salas will be hosting an activity in Spanish, and I will be hosting an activity in English. You are more than welcome to attend both (15 minutes each) or one of the activities. This is not a conference or a time to discuss your child individually, but a chance to have some fun while integrating literacy.
ACCESS Testing is this week. This is a test for second language learners acquiring English. Therefore, we will not have a spelling and vocab list in English. There will not be a spelling and vocab test in English on Friday either. But we will be having a test on whales and what we've learned about whales over these past 2 weeks. Tuesday's homework was only to read 30 minutes to help give extra time for reading for the reading challenge. Remember, 175 minutes is the minimum amount of minutes required to meet the challenge. If you didn't make it last week you need to have 350 minutes this Friday. I hope we improve from last week! Good luck!!!
Have a great week!
Mrs. Montes
Friday, January 13, 2012
Friday Update
Reading Challenge-The Clydesdale's had 67% of the class turn in their reading logs for week one. The Appaloosa's had 54%. Our goal is that 80% of the students will turn in the 175 minutes for the week. If you did not make it this week, you will need 175 minutes for next week, plus the minutes you missed this week. You can do it!
Our student teacher starts on Tuesday from Roosevelt College.
Congratulations to Grace and Cielo for being our students of the week.
Please practice Xtra Math over the weekend.
Report cards came home today. Please return the signed envelope on Tuesday for a 5 Horseshoe!
We will continue to learn about whales next week. On Friday, we will have a whale test based on the facts we have learned about whales these two weeks. We are having a lot of fun. Here are some fun websites to check out: kids.nationalgeographic.com or you can google "whale facts for kids" and there are several videos and other interesting facts to read about. I hope you have fun exploring!
Have a great weekend! Please be reading 25 minutes/day so we can meet our 175 minutes/week challenge!
Mrs. Montes
Our student teacher starts on Tuesday from Roosevelt College.
Congratulations to Grace and Cielo for being our students of the week.
Please practice Xtra Math over the weekend.
Report cards came home today. Please return the signed envelope on Tuesday for a 5 Horseshoe!
We will continue to learn about whales next week. On Friday, we will have a whale test based on the facts we have learned about whales these two weeks. We are having a lot of fun. Here are some fun websites to check out: kids.nationalgeographic.com or you can google "whale facts for kids" and there are several videos and other interesting facts to read about. I hope you have fun exploring!
Have a great weekend! Please be reading 25 minutes/day so we can meet our 175 minutes/week challenge!
Mrs. Montes
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Semester One Report Cards Report Cards will be sent home to parents on Friday, January 13, 2012.
School Supplies
As we start the second semester, it may be a great time to check if your student is in need of replenishing their school supplies. We find there are students unprepared for classes. We want them to have the necessary equipment in order to be successful in the classroom. Most likely to need replenished: sharpened pencils, crayons, glue sticks.
Cold Weather Dress Now that the cold weather is upon us, it is important for the students to dress appropriately based on the temperature. If your student chooses to wear short sleeves, please make sure they have a hoodie or sweater to put on in case they get cold. We go outside when the temperatures are in the low teens. Please send hats and gloves each day.
Student Teacher We will have a student teacher working in our class for the semester. She will begin in our class on Tuesday, January 17 until May. She will be observing to begin with, and then will start to take over teaching one subject area at a time. I am very excited to have her join us.
As we start the second semester, it may be a great time to check if your student is in need of replenishing their school supplies. We find there are students unprepared for classes. We want them to have the necessary equipment in order to be successful in the classroom. Most likely to need replenished: sharpened pencils, crayons, glue sticks.
Cold Weather Dress Now that the cold weather is upon us, it is important for the students to dress appropriately based on the temperature. If your student chooses to wear short sleeves, please make sure they have a hoodie or sweater to put on in case they get cold. We go outside when the temperatures are in the low teens. Please send hats and gloves each day.
Student Teacher We will have a student teacher working in our class for the semester. She will begin in our class on Tuesday, January 17 until May. She will be observing to begin with, and then will start to take over teaching one subject area at a time. I am very excited to have her join us.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Friday Updates!
Happy New Year!
I hope 2011 was a wonderful year for you and your family. Wishing you and your family a blessed 2012!
Olson’s “Character Counts Around the World” Reading Challenge
This year’s reading challenge will take place on a tour around 4 countries. The challenge will be 4 stops for 4 weeks 1/6/12-2/3/12
Week Number/Dates | Country & Character Pillar Stop | Prize awarded | Spirit Day Events on Friday Every Friday is turn-in day |
January Kick off on the 6th | Jan 6 Storyteller Jim May by grade level Wear Pajamas-“Cozy Up & Read” DEAR-reading time | ||
1- Jan 6-13 | Caring & Citizenship in | Passport around the world | Jan 13 Wear RED/PURPLE DEAR-reading time |
2- Jan 13-20 | Respect & Responsibility in | Character Bookmark, Book from Scholastic, Chilli’s kid’s meal | Jan 20 Wear YELLOW/GREEN DEAR-reading time |
3- Jan 20-27 | Trustworthy in | Magic Waters, Applebees, & McDonald’s | Jan 27 Wear BLUE DEAR-reading time |
4- Jan 27-Feb 3 | Fairness in | Six Flags Great America ticket | Feb 3 Wear DEAR-reading time |
Kick off is with grade level Story Teller Jim May-Friday, January 6, 2012
We will have weekly DEAR where we will Drop Everything And Read school-wide!
Grade Levels | # Mins. Daily | # Mins. Weekly |
Grade 2 | 25 minutes | 175 minutes |
For meeting our goals, there will be individual prizes, classroom prizes, and a school-wide prize at the end of the challenge. Please encourage your child to read each night and turn in the log on Friday mornings to their teacher. Late logs will not be accepted until the following week. All prizes will be awarded on Fridays. If a child is absent they have until the day they return to turn in their log with the required minutes on it. They will receive their prize the next Friday. The Magic Waters Log and Six Flags log must be completed with title and minutes, and everything it asks for. All the minutes read at home will go towards the 6 hours/360 minutes for Magic Waters and Six Flags. We will not fill out the Book-It sheet for January, but you will receive the certificate if you complete the January reading minutes on the challenge. I'm sorry for all the different documentation, but you can just copy the same reading minutes for each sheet. I am not particular about the titles. I'm mostly looking for the minutes added up and the parent signature. Good luck! I can't wait until all the logs come in on Friday! I just know we will have 100%! :)
Mrs. Montes
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)