SHAPE Woodstock

WELCOME TO SHAPE WOODSTOCK! – PARENTS INVITED TO JANUARY EVENT 

Research shows that students who participate in physical activity before they begin their academic classes have a longer attention span, have higher reading comprehension scores, and perform better on standardized tests than students who do not exercise.

Woodstock Community Unit School District 200 has been awarded a grant to enhance physical activity and healthy lifestyles for our students and their families that we are calling SHAPE Woodstock.  Through SHAPE Woodstock we are hosting a series of seminars that will inform parents about the positive impact physical activity and good nutrition have on the academic lives of children.

We would like to invite you to our first workshop on January 8, featuring Paul Zientarski, founder of the Learning Readiness Program for Naperville School District 203.  Paul will discuss how he and other educators have made a difference in the lives of students through exercise. 

All participants will have a chance to win prizes such as: pedometers, basketballs, footballs, snowshoes and much more!

We look forward to seeing you there!

SHAPE Woodstock Workshop
Thursday, January 8, 2015
6:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Woodstock North High School Auditorium, 3000 Raffle Road, Woodstock

For more information about SHAPE Woodstock, including upcoming events, programs, links and photos, please click here to visit the SHAPE Woodstock webpages.

Math Arrays

Hello Parents!
In math we are learning about arrays: A set that shows equal groups in rows and columns. Arrays in rectangles or squares help us gain the foundations for multiplication as repeated addition. Look for arrays in your world and in your home and share them with the class. Please take pictures and email them to me so we can share them with the class. Tmontes@wcusd200.org  Thanks!
Here is a link to some of the videos we have watched in class on YouTube. I encourage you to visit these sites with your child. One of them is a Minecraft example that shows arrays. Now I know most of the children are all about Minecraft, so I thought this would be a fun activity to connect to their virtual world. Please watch the video (Only needed up to about 1:30 to get the example) and take a picture of an array you created in Minecraft and email it to me. We will post

these images on the blog and share them at school. Please include the equation for repeated addition and multiplication with the answer! Thank you for participating! I can't wait to see what we get!

Samples of Arrays: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ks-q6gKoQKs

Minecraft Arrays: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAhsRE57tqE
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Thank you, Collin for sending in your array!


We are winding down our last couple days before break. We are enjoying our culture unit with the literacy component Cinderella stories from around the world. Our focus is on the lesson we can learn from these stories and comparing and contrasting the different events and characters. Even the boys are enjoying these stories. :) Our Opinion writing response will be to convince me which princess is most deserving of marrying the prince. Some have already formed their opinions, but we will see how convincing the children are!

Spelling and vocabulary test is Friday. Please review the spelling and culture words here on the blog. A list has also gone home.
Have a great week!
Mrs. Montes

This is It!

What a great performance by our second graders today! They did a fantastic job! Thank you for those of you who made it out to see our star performers today. This key reminds us to "Let it Go" and focus on the present moment. Forget about the past, forget about the future. Focus on the NOW!
Presentations begin next week for our culture unit on Wednesday. Some of you have already received the schedule. The rest will be scheduled and sent home on Monday. Please be practicing the fluency of the presentation, and keep it under 5 minutes. Thank you! Remember to use those key vocabulary words in the presentation!  I can't wait to begin!
Book Orders are due Tuesday if you would like to order. Every order earns us a free book for our classroom. You can order easily online or send the order to me. If you would like them to be Christmas presents, please let me know and I can wrap them up in a bag and keep them for you or send them with your child.
Enjoy these photos from our presentation today. Sorry, I can't get them to flip! :(

December News

Welcome to December!
Today the Madrigals came and performed for us from WNHS. It really helps get into the spirit of the holiday hearing them come and sing! WHS performs here on Friday.
We have a very busy 3 weeks ahead of us. We finish up our frogs and toads and non fiction today with our test on the diagram/life cycle of the frog. So far, they're going well! Thank you for spending the time at home practicing each of the stages with the captions to go with it. Our next unit is Culture. Ms. Salas will study the content words and we will focus on literature from different cultures. We will also study Germany, United States, and Mexico.We are anxious to hear the culture presentations when they start! This is one of our favorite times of the year when we get to hear about your family's heritage and culture. Please assist your child with any of the research and history, but allow them to complete the actual project independently. We appreciate your input and guidance along the way.
Measurement test is next week. We move on to place value and two digit addition next. Keep practicing those facts!
Also, we are roller skating for the month of December in PE class. We will be skating Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Please send skates and helmets on these days, or you may send them to keep at school on these days. Thanks. Feel free to volunteer during the 12-1:00 hour with our classes too! We can always use more lacers and tiers!
On Friday, the second grade classes will be presenting "This is It," the December Character Key of the month. Focus on the present moment and forget about the past of future. We have prepared a skit for each class that will be performed in front of the whole school. Some of the children came home with reading and speaking parts. Please help them prepare their lines at home. They do not have to memorize their lines, but some have chosen to memorize them. They can use notecards or the sheet I gave them to practice and they can be used during the actual performance. We will be practicing all week. Students may also dress in Disney's Frozen attire: princess gowns, dresses, shirts, pajamas, etc. can be brought to school and changed into before the performance. Please do not wear the gowns, dresses, or pajamas to school on Friday, but bring them in a bag to change into later. Thanks! Parents, you may join us at 1:30 on Friday if you like!
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Montes