Field Day and Other Fun

Today was Field Day for Second Grade!  It was such a beautiful day and we had a wonderful time!  We were assigned teams for relays and games.  We had a popsicle treat just before the Tug-of-War.  It was really hard to pull but we worked together and tried our very best.  In the end, we lost twice.   Thank you Mrs. Brink and Mr. DePrez for a fun morning! 

Tug-Of-War !

We have started a countdown to the last day of school.  Each link in the chain has a surprise activity.  We have to work hard all day by listening to directions, working hard during work time, being kind and polite to each other and showing Bengal Pride in all areas of the school.  Today we earned the letters to spell Ipad and we got to do Mad Libs on the ipad before going home.    We are also listening to Ramona Quimby, age 8  on tape.  We are reading one chapter a day.  So far we have met Ramona, her family and some kids at school.  

A Visit with an Olympian!

This morning we had the chance to meet and visit with Lee Stecklein of the U.S. Women's Hockey team.  She played in the Sochi Olympics and earned a silver medal.  She went to Brimhall for Kindergarten through sixth grade.  She gave us lots of time to ask questions.  It was awesome to meet her!

Lee Stecklein - Olympian

Silver Medal up close!

Her hockey stick that every member of the team signed.

Listening to her speak.

Mrs. Rolnitzky - Lee's Second grade teacher!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

We have been very busy during the past two weeks!  Here are a few examples of the learning going on in our classroom:

• The sixth graders performed Cinderella, Cinderella.  They invited us to a performance and it was wonderful!  It was a perfect introduction to our Cinderella unit.
• We have been working hard to read fluently and with expression.  We worked in groups to read and discuss Seeds of Fortune.  Ask your child about the moral of the story.
• We have had a few days of indoor recess recently which means we need a movement break in the afternoon.  We have been using a website called GoNoodle as a way to take a break and get our blood flowing.  It is really fun!
• We have been learning about multiplication and division.  We have used fact triangles to practice our facts.
• Even though our plant unit is over, we still have our class plants to observe.  Our potato plants and bulbs are growing each day!  It is exciting each morning to see the new growth.
• We were very busy making a surprise on Friday.  Everyone worked very hard on this project!

Cinderella, Cinderella

At the Ball!

The traditional version of Cinderella.

One of the versions we read.  

Working on fluency!

Retelling the story together.

Moving to GoNoodle!

Red Potato plant

Bulb growth!

Working hard !

So much hard work!

Today we . . .

Today we were very busy!  We got back to our regular schedule of Literacy Workshop and Whole Group Literacy.  It was fun to do something different last week, but also felt good to be back in a routine.  We had day #1 of indoor recess.  Looking at the forecast, we decided that we will probably be inside most of the week.

In writing, we started talking about how to share our opinion.  We read Duck!  Rabbit! and wrote our own opinions about whether the illustrator meant to draw a duck or a rabbit. 

We also noticed that our grass needs to be cut, again!  It is growing very quickly.  Tomorrow we will give it another "haircut" in our classroom.  Our brassica plants are nearing the end of their life cycle.  Many of them have flowers and some even have seedpods!

We started working on our Life Cycle displays.  It was lots of fun to draw the stages of the life of a plant.  Be watching for the plant materials to be coming home soon!

Special Times

Throughout the year we have been writing in a book called Special Times in Second Grade.  Yesterday the kids wrote about their field trip to Como.  It is amazing to see how they have grown as writers from the beginning of the year.  They are getting pretty good at writing a complete paragraph.

Enjoy a few examples!

Como Field Trip

We had a wonderful time at Como Conservatory and Zoo today!  We learned a lot and saw many plants and animals.  

Ready to go!

Plants That Care Class

We made bath salts!

Plant matching game

Listening and Learning

Exploring the Sunken Garden!

Plant Update!

Our classroom is filled with children but also filled with plants! 

Our Brassica plants are growing very quickly!

Up close view!

We planted grass!  Lots of grass!

Today we did another observation.  As scientists, we measure, draw and write about what we are seeing.

Studying and observing.