Grrrr...show us your best Bengal Tiger!

Wearing our tiger masks while waiting to go to the assembly.

Showing Bengal Pride!

Yesterday we had our 10,000 ticket celebration!

L and H. tigers

Four tigerrrrrrs.

A. tiger

The whole school went to an assembly in the afternoon.    We made tiger masks to wear to the assembly.

  As a school we have earned over 10,000 tickets this year.  The Second grade has earned the most tickets of any grade level in the school. 

  All the school staff made a great big circle around all of the students to show us that they are here to help us learn, be safe, be responsible and grow to be a better person.

L. tiger

Tigers at the assembly.

Then,  the doorbell rang and the Brimhall mascot jumped out of a box!  The mascot is a Bengal Tiger!  At the very end of the assembly our class got to have a picture taken with the Bengal tiger.  We felt very excited, awesome and proud.

The whole class and the Bengal Tiger!

Terrific Tuesday !

Today we had three artistic opportunities...

We made ours out of construction paper.
They turned out very beautiful!

1.  We made tiger masks to wear to the 10,000 ticket celebration on Wednesday.  We are very excited!

2.  We made paper flowers this afternoon.  It was challenging but with a little help it turned out to be fun.  We hung them in the classroom, in the hallway and even in the front office.

3.  We had Art this afternoon and tired to paint our landscapes.  Mr. Moore said we will do this next time.


Other fun things about today:
- In the Media Center we got to look at new books Ms. Zbacnik purchased for the library.  We saw many books we would like to check out in the future.  We even made her blog!

-  We got to have lunch with Mrs. Anderson as a reward for good behavior during Literacy Workshop.

Miracle Monday

It was a fabulous day in our class!

5.  In gym we did swinging and climbing.  We had to remember to land on our feet.

4.  We learned about the geography of the United States.  We learned many things but particularly we liked the 5 Great Lakes and that we are very lucky to live in Minnesota because we touch a Great Lake and have the Mississippi River.

3.  We made a Symmetry project by folding a sqaure piece of paper in half and cutting on the folded side.

2.  Our guest reader, Mrs. Erdahl read for the last time this year.  She is going to Arizona for the winter and will return April 1st.

1.  In Literacy we studied contractions.  Conttractions are two words that are pushed together into one and some letters are taken out.

We are so lucky because we have no homework except reading for 20 minutes and studying spelling words.

Today I got a Bengal Pride Ticket because...

5.  B got a Bengal Pride ticket because she was being honest and fair while playing the game.

4.  H got a Bengal Pride ticket because he had a neat coat hook.

3.  H got a Bengal Pride ticket because she helped put balls away in gym.

2.  E got a Bengal Pride ticket for being quiet and working on her Daily Word Fun.

1.  E got a Bengal Pride ticket because she was being quiet in line.

Tomorrow we hope to earn even more Bengal Pride tickets!  Keep up the good work!

Wonderful Wednesday

We started the day with the entire class earning Bengal Pride tickets for having a clean and neat hallway and coat hook area.

5.  In Art we started a landscaping project.  We can select an area to draw in pencil and then we will add paint later.  We have to add details like things that belong outside.  We had to start with the horizon line.

4.  We have spent the last two days during writing taking turns trading out our books in our Literacy bags.  We all have new books to read for the next few weeks.

3.  We had indoor recess and watched Tuesday by David Wiesner.  Tuesday is a wordless picture book.

2.  We went to the Library today and read Chalk  by Bill Thomson with Mr. Cutts.  Chalk is a unique book because it is a wordless picture book.  One of our favorite parts of the book was when the chalk dinosaur came to life.

1.  We started learning geography.  We learned about the 7 continents and 4 major oceans.

Thursday

Today is the first time we have had a chance to blog this week!  Here are a few thoughts from today:

5.  We started reading Babe by Dick King-Smith on Wednesday and continued with chapter 2 today.  We are hoping to watch the movie before break.

4.  We went to the media center to visit Ms. Zbacnik and Mrs. McNulty.  We learned about the  Biblioburro.

3.  In Art we are starting a new project.  We are learning about landscapes. 

2.  In health we learned about the importance of having a healthy breakfast.  We are having a test tomorrow about healthy eating.

1.  In math we learned about lines of symmetry.

Tomorrow is Bengal Pride School colors day and report cards will go home.  To show Bengal pride you can wear navy blue, blue, gray or white.

Terrific Tuesday !

Today was a sunny day but it was cold outside. We were busy inside!

5. We read Click, Clack, Moo Cows that Type by Doreen Cronin. We are going to study her the rest of this month and some of December.

4. We read That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown  by Cressida Cowell and Elbert's Bad Word by Audrey Wood. We read both of these books as a part of learning about writing a story.  We identified characters, location, action, problem and solution

3.  We had a substitute, Mr. Savre, in Music.  We sang a bunch of songs and then did The Bouncer dance three times.

2. We started our Handwriting books today!

1. In math we studied point, line and line segment. We did secret codes to practice drawing lines.

Have a great night!

Read In Rocks !

Today was our Read In! Here are the top five things we want you to know:
5. We got to bring a pillow or a stuffed animal and we cuddled with them to read our favorite book.

4. We had a snack of animal crackers and fruit snacks. It was amazing and different.

3. We read for an entire hour! That is longer than we read for Read to Self.

2. We watched Owl Moon by Jane Yolen on bookflix.

1. Mrs. Anderson read More Bears by Kenn Nesbit. We learned about speech bubbles.

Have a great weekend! Enjoy our slideshow !

Best Buddies

This morning we got to meet our buddies.  Here are the best things about our buddies:

5.  Our buddies read us a book.  Some people listened to two stories.

4.  They taught us a special handshake.

3.  We showed our buddies three ways we think they are great!

2.  We spent some time getting to know each other.

1.  We loved spending time with them and want to see them again soon.

Tomorrow we are having a Read-In or our reading party.  We need to bring a book, and a stuffed animal or pillow that fits in our backpacks.  We will have a special snack.  School is out at 12:45 p.m.

Marvelous Monday and more !

 Today was a fabulous day because we made our turkey hats!  We made them this morning and wore them to lunch.  It was awesome and we looked very cute!

5.  We had many classroom volunteers come to help with our turkey hats.  Thank you parents!

4.  We read Thank You Sarah.  We learned how Sarah Hale saved Thanksgiving.

3.  We also read Thanksgiving at the Tappletons'.  We learned that Thanksgiving is about being with your family and friends.

2.  We took notes about urban settings.   Buildings are close together and usually very tall.  There are also more people in and urban setting as well as more options for shopping.

Turkeys staying in from recess...a good idea!

1.  It was the first day of recess with snow.  We need to remember to wear warm clothes and clothes that will keep us dry.

We are looking forward to Jungle Tag in gym and meeting our Buddies!

Fantastc Friday !

Today was a great day because we deliverd our letters to our buddies!

5.  We watched a bookflix book for a reward for good behavior during Literacy Workshop.

4.  In math we had four pages of math work!  It was tiring!  We are all feeling better about Ballpark Estimates and Partial Sums.

3.  We had a guest reader Mrs. Erdahl come and read to us.  She used to be a librarian at Brimhall.

2.  In Gym, we got to play a soccer tag game.

1.  We played "Mystery Leader" this morning before Literacy Workshop.

We can't wait until Monday to make our turkey hats!

Wonderful Wednesday

This is the first time we have been able to blog this week.  We have some important things to tell you.

5.  We finished writing to our Fifth grade Buddies.  We are meeting them on Monday!

From Kitten's First Full Moon

 4.  In gym we started learning about soccer.  We learned how to dribble.

3.  We read Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes and practiced creating mental images.  Mrs. Anderson did not show us the pictures as she read.  Instead we drew what we saw in our minds.

2.  In math we used attribute blocks and a tape measure.  We also learned a little about Ball Park Estimates.

1.  We continued to learn about Rural, Suburban and Urban.  Today we talked about Suburban.

Be sure to check your Wednesday folders for the Peek at the Week.

Fantastic Friday !

Today felt like a very exciting day !

5.  We had Library today.  We checked out books and showed Ms. Z and Mrs. McNulty "Super Star!"  We even made it on
Ms. Zbacnik's Library Blog !

4.  We made a special art project about clouds and where they are in the sky.

3.  We finished Lily's Big Day by Kevin Henkes.

2.  We found out who our fifth grade buddies will be and started our letters to them.

1.  We are beginning to figure out the calendar pattern Ms. Kath's class made for us.  We think it might be a growing, shrinking pattern.

We can't wait until Monday!  Have a great weekend everyone!

Thrilling Thursday !

Even though it was kind of gloomy outside, we enjoyed our day !

5.  Gym - We played Bear Tunnel Tag.  We also did a test on skipping, running, galloping and hopping on one foot.

4.   We took a Health test about our Brain this afternoon.

3.  We started thinking about and learning about writing a letter to our Fifth grade buddies.

2. During Read to Self Time we had a chance to read, with no interruptions.

1.  We read Lily's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes and learned about forgiveness.

Friday we have a spelling test and it will be a great day!

Magnificent Monday

Today was a busy day!

5.  We went to Art and almost finished our torn art project.

4.  We had a special birthday in our class!

3. We went to the Media Center and Ms. Z read us Oscar and the Very Hungary Dragon.  It is one of the books from the 15 Books Student Choice Picture Book award nomination list. 

2.  In math we learned about Number Bonds and practiced Two Rule Frames and Arrows.

1.  We had Read to Self time during Literacy Workshop.

Tomorrow, Mrs. House will be our substitute.  We are very excited to see her!

Read - A - Thon

During the month of November we are having a Read-a-Thon at Brimhall!  As an entire school we are trying to read 1,000,000 minutes.  Students and staff are keeping track of the minutes we read each day at home and classroom teachers are keeping track of minutes read in school.

Happy Reading !

As a part of the Read-a-Thon the Second grade will be having a Read-In  the morning of Wednesday, November 23rd.  We will spend the entire morning reading, listening to stories, watching Bookflix etc.  Students can bring one thing to read with such as a stuffed animal or pillow.  We will also enjoy a special treat.

Please be sure to send the Read-a-Thon calendar  to school every Wednesday.  Keep up the good reading everyone!

Friday! Friday! Friday!+

We were busy taking tests today...but we managed to have some fun!

5.  In gym we learned a new dance and practiced the YMCA!  We had Mr. Savre for a substitute.

4.  We started to learn about our brain.  It is the control system.

3.  We finished our How To writings.  They look awesome!

2.  We read Jessica by Kevin Henkes.  We are studying him this month.

1.  We drew Bengal Pride ticket winners for our class.  The two winners get to have lunch with Mrs. Anderson and a friend.

Have a fun weekend everyone!

High Five

We had a busy and active day!  Here are the High Five events:

5.  In Music we played instruments.
4.  We ran two laps to  calm down after Music.
3.  Math - we did math boxes.
2.  Some people switched out books from our Literacy Bags.
1.  We started our Blog!

High Five

High Five - They Might be Giants

At the end of each day I try to have the kids  name five amazing and awesome things of the day.  Here is the list from today:

5.  Extra recess - We earned this as a result of being on task during Literacy Workshop.

4.  Art - We worked on a puzzle project.

3.  Math - We did four pages of math today...phew!

2.  Math - We learned about double frames and arrows.  They have two rules we need to follow.

1.  We went to the media center and Ms. Zbacnik read Otis and the Tornado.  We also checked out books.

What's in a name?

If you ask the average second grader, "What did you do at school today?" they will almost always say something about their favorite activities, lunch and recess.  While these are very important activities in the life of a 7 or 8 year old, believe me it is far from all that happens in a day.  In this blog I hope to share with you some of the other activities we do as a class, in small groups and individuals.  I will include academic activities as well as some fun things we do in room 109.