Thoughts from the 1st week of school

We learned things in math. Brady
We learned how to count money. Fletcher
We learned new things in social studies. Alyssa
We did social studies. Landen
We did recess. Gabe
We learned how to read. Jason
I like to read. Emily
We read books. Travis
Daily 5 is fun. Jacy
We learned how to write. Ashley
We did morning meeting. Abby
Do Cadet Pride. Jasmin
Math is hard. Noah
Make good choices. Cole
Be respectful. Hunter
Make new friends. Nathan
Be trustworthy. Amy
Get tickets. Zachary
School is fun. Casandra

Class Parties

Our class will be having a class party for Valentine’s Day, Halloween, and Christmas. We are asking that you please donate $4.00 to go towards the class party fund. From this fund, refreshments and any necessary supplies will be purchased. Please send $4.00 in an envelope to school with your child. Thanks!

Birthdays

Soon enough we will start having birthdays here in 2A so I thought I would give you a heads up and/or a quick reminder about our birthday policy here at Howard-Winn.

If a child's birthday is during the school year we will celebrate it on the actual day. If you would like to send treats you are welcome to do that. Please make sure they are store bought -- sorry, no homemade food allowed:( Also, with our new Wellness Policy we're asking that if at all possible you try and make the treat healthy. If your child's birthday is in the summer we will celebrate their half birthday. Once again, you may send treats if you wish. Please make sure that the birthday treats do not contain peanuts or peanut butter.

Students may bring invitations to school and pass them out for parties. However, if a boy is having a party and brings the invitations to school, he must invite all the boys. This is the same for girls -- girls need to invite all the girls. Otherwise there will be hurt feelings. If you want to have a smaller party, please mail the invitations from your home. Thanks!

And.....We're Off!!

We are definitely into the full swing of things in 2A! We spent the first couple of days discussing and reviewing Cadet Pride. This was a review from last year but it needs to be retaught every year. We began implementing Cadet Pride last year and it was VERY successful so we are hoping for the same results this year. We are busy working towards a reward and students are busy trying to earn their blue tickets.

Now that I have taught the students all of the Cadet Pride expectations for school I am going to expect that I see Cadet Pride throughout the day. Unfortunately, a lot of 2A friends are struggling with this. I have to talk to the class MANY times throughout the day and remind them of my expectations. I have a lot of very chatty kids and I need them to understand that with 21 kids it's really difficult to teach when I have them talking. Also, it is unfair for those that are trying to listen. Please discuss Cadet Pride with your child at home and remind him/her of the 4 Cadet Pride rules: Be Caring, Be Respectful, Be Responsible, and Be Trustworthy. Thanks for help with this.

This week I introduced Daily 5 to the students and we have been busy practicing Read to Self. So far 2A students have built their stamina up to 9 minutes. We can't seem to get past that but we are hopeful that tomorrow will be the lucky day! My goal for them is to get their stamina up to 25 minutes. This means that everyone in the class needs to be reading quietly and for the full 25 minutes. This definitely takes teamwork and practice! Please encourage your child to be reading every night at home. Now that your child is in 2nd grade he/she should be reading 15-20 minutes each night!!!!!

We also started math this week. So far we are just busy reviewing skills that were to be learned lat year: basic addition, time, money, etc. We are also busy establishing math routines so that we will have a successful math class for the remainder of the year.

Thanks to everyone for sending money to school with your child. They appreciate using real money during math class!!!

First 2 days Wordle

2A students made a wordle at the end of the day yesterday. They thought of words to describe the first two days and then I made a wordle with those words.

Click on Wordle to see it. It's also along the side of the blog page.

Successful Open House

Thank you, thank you to all the parents and students who came to Back to School night!!! It was great to meet all of my new 2nd graders and their families. I am going to have a wonderful group of students this year:) Please feel free to contact me any time throughout the school year if you have any questions or concerns. I can't wait to spend this school year with you!

What?? Summer is over??

Where did the summer go? It seems like I was just packing up my classroom and now I have been busy unpacking everything again! I must admit, I'm a little sad that the summer is over. I had a great time at home with all 3 of my girls this summer. They sure kept me busy but I loved every minute of it. Grace is ready for kindergarten this year, Livvie is looking forward to daycare, and Nora is just starting to roll over and laugh at her sisters!!

My family and I did a lot of fun things this summer and I'm sure you did as well. I'm excited to hear all of your stories from the summer! I'm also excited to meet all of my new kiddos!!!!

Enjoy the last few days of summer freedom and I will see you at Back to School night!!