Welcome to 2nd Grade!

I am so excited to welcome you to second grade! As a proud St. Joseph Catholic School alumna, returning to teach in this community is incredibly meaningful to me. My husband of 13 years and I were married at St. Joseph Catholic Church, both of my children were baptized here, and they now attend SJCS, Chloe is in 7th grade and Cameron is in 5th grade.

A Little About Me

I graduated from Liberty University in May 2026 with my Master of Arts in Teaching and completed my student teaching in Hawthorn District 73. Before becoming a classroom teacher, I spent several years working with students at St. Joseph through substitute teaching across multiple grade levels, as the Director of EDP, and as the Director of Camp Joe.

Our 2nd Grade Classroom

My goal is to create a warm, structured classroom where every child feels known, supported, and challenged. I believe in meeting students where they are and using a variety of instructional approaches, including explicit instruction, modeling, small groups, hands-on learning, collaboration, and differentiated support. I want students to build strong academic skills while also becoming confident, independent learners who are comfortable asking questions, making mistakes, and trying new strategies. Second grade is also such a special year in our Catholic faith, and I feel truly blessed to guide students as they prepare for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion.

I am looking forward to partnering with you and making this a wonderful year of learning, growth, faith, and fun!
-Mrs. Smith

Posts

Wednesday, 9/16/2026 - Updates

We had another busy day in 2nd grade! We are getting excited for Friday’s Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run and are keeping our fingers crossed for some beautiful weather.

Phonics:
We continued working with bonus letters and our glued sounds, including am, an, all, ang, ank, ing, ink, ong, onk, ung, and unk. We also continued practicing our trick words: both, talk, walk, shall, full, and pull.

Reading & Writing:
We continued working on informational writing and thinking about how a strong topic sentence and supporting details work together to teach the reader about a topic.

Math:
We continued working with equal groups. Students practiced using repeated addition to find the total in equal groups and began making the connection between equal groups, repeated addition, and multiplication.

Science:
We continued thinking about why certain birds might visit a bird feeder and how the type of food available can attract different kinds of birds. Next we will be building our prototypes!

Religion:
As we prepare for Friday’s Rosary Prayer Service, we continued learning about Mary and the prayers of the Rosary.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes. Students can read independently, read with an adult, listen to an audiobook, or have someone read to them. There are lots of ways to build reading stamina!

Math: Complete Chapter 2, Lesson 2 homework pages.

Students can also continue practicing bonus letter words, glued sounds, and our trick words.

Reminders

Thursday: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or art smock if you have not already.

Friday: Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run. 2nd graders should wear their gray Spirit Run shirt, athletic shorts or pants of appropriate length, and sneakers or athletic shoes.

Friday: Please still return library books. With our Friday morning events, we may not make it to our regular Library class.

Please keep all toys at home. Thank you for your help with this!

Please continue to send a healthy snack and water bottle with your child each day.

We are looking forward to a fun and special Friday together!

Thursday, 9/17/26 - Updates

We had another great day in 2nd grade! We are very excited for tomorrow’s Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run and are hoping for some beautiful weather.

Phonics:
We continued practicing words with bonus letters and our glued sounds: am, an, all, ang, ank, ing, ink, ong, onk, ung, and unk. We also continued reviewing our trick words: both, talk, walk, shall, full, and pull.

Reading & Writing:
We continued working on our informational writing skills by using a clear topic sentence with supporting details.

Math:
Today we learned about arrays and how they can help us organize equal groups. We practiced looking at rows and columns and connecting arrays to the equal groups and skip counting work we have been doing.

Religion:
We continued preparing for tomorrow’s Rosary Prayer Service and made our own mini rosaries! The students will bring their rosaries with them to the prayer service tomorrow as we pray together.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes. Students can read independently, read with an adult, listen to an audiobook, or have someone read to them.

Math: Complete Chapter 2, Lesson 4 homework pages.

Students can also continue practicing bonus letter words, glued sounds, and our trick words.

Reminders

Friday: Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run

2nd graders should wear their gray Spirit Run shirt, athletic shorts or pants of appropriate length, and sneakers or athletic shoes.

Please continue to keep all toys at home. Thank you for your help and cooperation.

Please continue to send a healthy snack and water bottle with your child each day.

We are looking forward to a very special Friday together!

Tuesday, 9/15/26 - Updates

Happy Tuesday! Today we celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. This feast reminds us of the sadness and suffering Mary experienced during Jesus’ life and death and of the strength of her faith through those difficult moments. As we continue preparing for our Rosary Prayer Service on Friday, we are learning more about Mary, the prayers of the Rosary, and how we can ask Mary to bring our prayers to God.

Phonics:
We continued reviewing bonus letters ff, ll, ss, and zz and our trick words shall, full, and pull. We also introduced our new trick words both, talk, and walk and began learning our new glued sounds: am, an, ang, ank, ing, ink, ong, onk, ung, and unk.

Our next phonics assessment will be Tuesday, 9/22.

Math:
We started Chapter 2 today! Students practiced skip counting to find the total in equal groups. This is an important first step toward understanding repeated addition and, eventually, multiplication. We will continue building on this idea throughout the week.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes.

Math: Complete Chapter 2, Lesson 1 homework page.

Optional Math Review: Chapter 1, Lesson 11 homework page. This is extra review of skills we have already practiced.

Students can also continue practicing bonus letter words, our new glued sounds, and trick words.

Reminders

Thursday: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or art smock if you have not already.

Friday: Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run. Please have your child wear their Spirit Run T shirt, gym shorts or pants of appropriate length, and athletic shoes.

Students will remain with our class throughout the event for safety.

Friday: Please still return library books. With our Friday morning activities, we may not make it to our regular Library class.

Tuesday, 9/22: Phonics Unit 2 assessment

We are looking forward to a special Friday together!

Monday, 9/14/26 - Updates

I hope everyone had a great weekend! We had a busy day in 2nd grade and jumped right back into our learning.

Phonics:
We continued practicing our Unit 2 skills with bonus letters ff, ll, ss, and sometimes zz. We will continue building on these skills tomorrow with some new spelling patterns.

Reading & Writing:
We continued working on informative paragraphs. Today we focused on topic sentences and supporting details and talked about how our details should connect back to and support the main topic.

Math:
Today we worked on Chapter 1, Lesson 10 and reviewed related addition and subtraction fact families. We also started to touch on missing addends and will continue working with those tomorrow.

Science:
Last week, we learned about how frogs use different sounds to communicate and how those sounds can help us identify different species. Today we started the final lesson in our Animal Diversity unit by thinking about the question, “Why would birds come to your bird feeder?” We began discussing what might attract different types of birds and how the food available at a feeder can affect which birds visit.

Religion:
We reviewed some of the important words we have been learning, including Christ, Jesus, Emmanuel, and Savior, and talked about what each name tells us about Jesus.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes.

Math: If your child did not complete the Chapter 1, Lesson 10 homework page, page 1.10 is homework tonight.

Students may also continue practicing bonus letter words and our trick words full, pull, and shall.

Reminders

Tuesday: All School Buddy Mass. We will celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows.

Tuesday: P.E. Please wear gym uniforms.

Thursday: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or art smock if you have not already.

Friday: Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run. Please have your child wear their Spirit Run T shirt (that came home last week), gym shorts or pants of appropriate length, and athletic shoes. Students will remain with our class throughout the event for safety.

Friday: Please still return library books. With our Friday morning activities, we may not make it to our regular Library class.

We are looking forward to a great week!

Week at a Glance, 9/14/26-9/18/26

Week of September 14 to 18, 2026

Math:
We will continue working in Chapter 1 for a few lessons as we review addition and subtraction strategies before moving on to Chapter 2. Students will practice finding missing addends, using a hundreds chart, and skip counting to find totals in equal groups. This will also begin building an early understanding of multiplication as equal groups. There will not be an assessment for Chapter 1.

Phonics (FUNdations):
We will continue practicing bonus letters ff, ll, ss, and zz. We will review the trick words pull, full, and shall and introduce both, talk, and walk. We will also begin learning about glued sounds, including all, am, an, ang, ank, ing, ink, ong, onk, ung, and unk. Our next phonics assessment will be during the week of September 21.

Reading & Writing (Wit & Wisdom):
We will continue exploring how change affects people and nature as we prepare to write our first informational paragraphs. Students will practice choosing a strong topic sentence and finding details and evidence that support it. We will also read our first fiction text in this module, The Little Yellow Leaf, and begin comparing fiction and nonfiction texts.

Science:
We will wrap up our Animal Diversity unit by learning how different types of bird feeders can attract different birds based on what they eat. Students will work together to think about and create prototypes of bird feeders designed for different types of birds.

If you have any paper plates or small paper cups you would be willing to donate for our science activity, we would happily use them!

Religion:
With our Rosary Prayer Service coming up on Friday, we will spend time learning more about Mary and the prayers of the Rosary. We will practice the Hail Mary, Our Father, and Glory Be and make decade rosaries using pipe cleaners and beads. We will also talk about how Mary helps bring our prayers and intentions to God.

Tests and Assessments

There are no scheduled classroom assessments this week.

We will also continue working on the math portion of iReady Inform.

Reminders

Monday: P.E. Please wear gym uniforms.

Tuesday: P.E. Please wear gym uniforms.

Tuesday: All School Buddy Mass

Thursday: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or art smock if you have not already.

Friday: Library and Music. Please return library books so students can check out new ones.

Friday, 9/18: Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run. Please watch for communication from the school regarding timing and other details.

Please continue to help your child come to school well rested, with a good breakfast, healthy snack, water bottle, and lunch each day.

Have a wonderful rest of your weekend!

Thursday, 9/10/26 - Updates

Tomorrow is the 25th anniversary of September 11. We continue to pray for peace, for those who serve and protect our communities, and for kindness in our world. We will keep our classroom focus age appropriate and centered on prayer, gratitude, and caring for others

Phonics:
We continued practicing our Unit 2 skills with bonus letters ff, ll, ss, and sometimes zz. We also kept working with our trick words: full, pull, and shall. We also began discussing r-controlled vowels (ar,er,ir,or,ur).

Reading & Writing:
We continued our Wit & Wisdom work with our theme, A Season of Change. Today we practiced identifying the topic and important details in parts of How Do You Know It’s Fall? The students did a great job sharing what they noticed and using the text to support their thinking.

Math:
We continued reviewing addition and subtraction facts and talked more about how addition and subtraction are connected. Today’s homework is Chapter 1, Lesson 1, which we are using as review practice.

Science:
We continued our science unit, Why Do Frogs Ribbit? Today we listened to different frog and toad sounds and tried to figure out which animal was making each one. The students had to really use their listening skills and remember the unique sounds they had heard. This was such a fun lesson, and they had lots of great ideas!

Religion:
We learned more about how God gives us Jesus. We talked about the tabernacle, the Blessed Sacrament, and how Emmanuel is another name for Jesus, meaning “God with us.” The students had some really thoughtful responses during our discussion.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes and remember to return library books tomorrow.

Math: Complete Chapter 1, Lesson 1 as review practice.

Students may also continue practicing bonus letter words and the trick words full, pull, and shall.

Reminders

Friday: Library and Music. Please return library books so students can check out new ones.

Friday: Graded Math and Phonics assessments will be sent home.

Friday, 9/18: Rosary Prayer Service and Spirit Run - Your child came home today with a t-shirt to wear the day of the Spirit Run.

Please continue to send a healthy snack, water bottle, and lunch each day. Thank you!

Wednesday, 9/9/26 - Updates

Thank you so much for your generosity with our Food Pantry collection today! We talked about how one way we can care for others is by helping those in need. Our 2nd graders did a wonderful job showing kindness to our community.

Phonics:
We continued working in Unit 2 with bonus letters ff, ll, ss, and sometimes zz. We practiced reading and spelling words with short vowels and bonus letters. We also worked with our new trick words: shall, full, and pull.

Math:
Students completed their first math assessment today! This assessment covered the place value concepts we have been working on, including reading and writing numbers, expanded form, skip counting, and comparing numbers.

Science:
We began thinking about the question, “Why do frogs ribbit?” We discussed why frogs make different sounds and how those sounds can help us figure out what species of frog we might be hearing.

Religion:
We continued talking about God’s creation and the many things in the world around us that God has given us. Each student shared one thing they especially love about God’s creation.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes

There is no written math homework tonight.

Students may also continue practicing words with bonus letters and our trick words shall, full, and pull. The Unit 2 FUNdations packet that came home today does not need to be returned. This is for extra practice at home.

iReady

We have started the math portion of our iReady Inform testing and will continue working on it over the next week or so. Please help your child come to school well rested, with a good breakfast, healthy snack, water bottle, and ready to do their best.

Reminders

Thursday: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or art smock if you have not already.

Friday: Library and Music. Please return library books so students can check out new ones.

Friday, 9/18: Spirit Run and Rosary Prayer Service

Please continue to send a healthy snack, water bottle, and lunch with your child each day. Thank you!

Tuesday, 9/8/26 - Updates

Happy Tuesday! I hope you all had a long restful weekend. Today we celebrated Mother Mary’s birthday, the Feast of the Nativity of Mary. During Mass, Father Jake talked in his homily about special gifts we can give to Mary, including praying the Rosary, giving her our hearts, and bringing her roses. It was a beautiful way to begin our day and remind us how much Mary points us toward Jesus.

Phonics:
We began Unit 2 and introduced bonus letters ff, ll, ss, and zz. Students practiced reading and spelling words with short vowels and bonus letters, such as cliff, stuff, miss, class, fill, bell, buzz, and fizz.

Reading & Writing:
We continued our Wit & Wisdom work with our theme, A Season of Change. We also continued learning how to write an informative paragraph. We talked about what an informative paragraph needs, including a topic sentence and supporting details that stay focused on the topic.

Math:
We reviewed the place value concepts we have been practicing, including expanded form, skip counting, and comparing numbers, as we prepare for our Chapter 5 assessment tomorrow.

Religion:
We continued our discussion about Mary and looked closely at the quilt The Garden by Alba Corrado. We connected the artwork to God’s creation and talked about the many ways we can help care for the world around us. Students also shared examples of things they have seen other people do to care for God’s creation.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes

There is no written math homework tonight.

Assessments

Wednesday, 9/9: Chapter 5 Math Assessment

iReady

We are finishing the reading portion of our iReady Inform testing and will begin the math portion tomorrow, Wednesday, 9/9. Please continue to help your child come to school well rested, with a good breakfast, snack, and water bottle, and ready to do their best.

Reminders

Wednesday, 9/9: Food Pantry Collection. Please send breakfast cereal with your 2nd grader if you are able to contribute.

Thursday, 9/10: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or art smock, if you have not already.

Friday, 9/11: Library and Music. Please return library books so students can check out new ones.

Thank you!

Week at a Glance, 9/7/26-9/11/26

Happy Friday! We had a great end to another busy week in 2nd grade.

Phonics:
Students completed their Unit 1 phonics assessment today.

Reading & Writing:
We started discussing information paragraphs and practiced writing our thoughts about fun activities to do in the fall.

Math:
We continued practicing place value, expanded form, and skip counting as we prepare for our Chapter 5 assessment next week.

Science:
We wrapped up our lesson about why a wild animal might choose to live on or visit a playground.

Week at a Glance

Week of September 7-11, 2026

Math:
We will wrap up our work with place value this week. On Tuesday, we will review the concepts we have been practicing, including reading and writing numbers, expanded form, skip counting, and comparing numbers using greater than, less than, and equal to. Our Chapter 5 assessment will be on Wednesday. After the assessment, we will begin reviewing addition strategies from Chapter 1.

Phonics (FUNdations):
We will begin Unit 2 and learn about bonus letters f, l, and s. Students will learn that these letters are often doubled at the end of a closed syllable following a short vowel, as in words such as cliff, fell, and moss. Our new trick words will be shall, full, and pull.

Reading & Writing (Wit & Wisdom):
We will continue exploring our theme, A Season of Change. Students will read and discuss literary and informational texts and continue thinking about how and why things change. We will also begin looking at nonfiction text features, including a table of contents, index, and glossary, and discuss how these features help readers find information. We will continue practicing strong speaking and listening skills and begin identifying verbs in sentences.

Science:
We will continue our animal biodiversity unit and begin learning about how frogs communicate. Students will listen to different frog calls and use what they hear to think about which frogs may live in different habitats.

Religion:
Our next lesson is called “God Gives Us Jesus.” We will learn more about how God sent His Son, Jesus, to us and how we receive Jesus in the Eucharist at Mass. We will also review the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Tests and Assessments

Wednesday, 9/9: Math Chapter 5 assessment

We will also begin the math portion of our iReady Inform testing this week.

Reminders

Monday, 9/7: No School for Labor Day

Tuesday, 9/8: P.E. Please wear gym uniforms.

Wednesday, 9/9: Food Pantry Collection. Please send breakfast cereal with your 2nd grader if you are able to contribute.

Thursday: STEAM and Art. Please bring an oversized shirt or smock for art if you have not already.

Friday: Library and Music. Please remember to return library books.

Students will begin the math portion of iReady Inform testing on Tuesday. Please continue to help your child come to school well rested, with a good breakfast, snack, and water bottle, and ready to do their best.

If you placed a Scholastic order, thank you! Our order has been submitted, and I will send books home once they arrive.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for Curriculum Night. It was wonderful to have you in our classroom and share more about what we will be learning together this year. If you missed curriculum night, your child will come home with all information we discussed and a link to the slides is here.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Labor Day weekend!

Wednesday, 9/2/26 - Updates

We had another great day in 2nd grade! There were lots of great conversations, big ideas, and connections happening throughout our lessons today.

Phonics:
We continued practicing CVC words, blends, digraphs, and the /k/ sound, including when to use c, k, or ck when spelling. We also started talking about closed syllables and continued practicing our trick words: you, your, one, said, they, and was.

Reading & Writing:
We continued exploring our Wit & Wisdom theme, A Season of Change. Today we read and discussed the poem Weather and talked more about what change means and what change can look like. Students did a great job sharing their ideas and making connections to our theme.

Math:
Today we learned about greater than, less than, and equal to and practiced comparing numbers up to 1,000 using >, <, and =. We also continued practicing expanded form and reviewing place value.

Science:
We started our new science lesson with a virtual field trip to the desert! We discussed why a wild animal might choose to visit a playground and learned about the wild bighorn sheep that visit Hemenway Park in Boulder City, Nevada, each day before traveling back up the mountain to sleep. The students loved this and had some really great big ideas about why animals might choose to visit places where people live and play.

Religion:
We continued learning about God’s creation and discussed how we are called to care not only for one another, but also for the world around us. We also took time to share a blessing that each of us is thankful for.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes

Math: Complete page 5.7

Assessments

Phonics: Assessment on Friday, 9/4

Math: Assessment Friday 9/4 or Wednesday 9/9 *Decision to be made tomorrow

iReady

iReady Diagnostic testing will continue this week and next. Please help your child come to school well rested, with a healthy breakfast, snack, and water bottle, and ready to do their best.

Reminders

Thursday, 9/3: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or smock if you have not already.

Thursday, 9/3: Curriculum Night* begins at 6:00 PM in the Koenig Center. After the general session, there will be three separate time periods for you to come to our classroom and hear more about what we will be learning in 2nd grade this year. I hope to see you there! *Parent-only

Friday, 9/4: Library and Music. Please remember to return library books.

Scholastic Book Orders: Orders are optional and are due by Friday, September 4.
Class page: https://orders.scholastic.com/337PJ2
Class code: 337PJ2

Monday, 9/7: No School for Labor Day

Tuesday, 9/8: P.E. Please wear gym uniforms.

Please continue to send a water bottle, healthy morning snack, and lunch each day. Thank you!

Thursday, 9/3/26 - Updates

We had another great day in 2nd grade! We spent time reviewing what we have learned this week and continued building on our reading, writing, and math skills.

Phonics:
We reviewed the phonics skills we have been working on this week, including CVC words, blends, digraphs, the /k/ sound and when to use c, k, or ck, closed syllables, and our trick words: you, your, one, said, they, and was.

We will have our first phonics assessment tomorrow, Friday, 9/4.

Reading & Writing:
We started diving more deeply into texts connected to our Wit & Wisdom theme, A Season of Change. Our first text was How Do We Know It’s Fall? Students shared what they noticed and wondered about the question and began thinking about how we can recognize signs of change in the world around us. We will continue exploring additional texts tomorrow.

Math:
We reviewed the place value concepts we have learned so far, including reading and writing numbers, expanded form, skip counting, and comparing numbers using greater than, less than, and equal to.

Our math assessment has been moved to Wednesday, 9/9 so students have some additional time to practice these concepts.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes

There is no new math homework tonight.

iReady

We are finishing up the reading portion of our iReady Inform testing. Students will begin the math portion on Tuesday, 9/8.

Reminders

Tonight, Thursday, 9/3: Curriculum Night begins at 6:00 PM in the Koenig Center. After the general session, there will be three separate time periods for you to come to our classroom and hear more about what we will be learning in 2nd grade this year. I hope to see you there! If you cannot make it, your child will bring home important materials tomorrow for your review.

Friday, 9/4: Library and Music. Please remember to return library books.

Friday, 9/4: First phonics assessment

Friday, 9/4: Scholastic book orders are due.

Class page: https://orders.scholastic.com/VY7QC
Class code: VY7QC

Monday, 9/7: No School for Labor Day

Tuesday, 9/8: P.E. Please wear gym uniforms.

Wednesday, 9/9: Math assessment

Please continue to send a water bottle, healthy morning snack, and lunch each day. Thank you!

Tuesday, 9/1/26 - Updates

We had a great Tuesday in 2nd grade! Today we attended our first All School Mass with our Buddies, and our 2nd graders did an amazing job. A few of our students were gift bearers with their buddies at Mass and did a great job! They were reverent, respectful, and wonderful role models. They should all be very proud of themselves!

During Mass, Father Conrad talked about our patron saint, Saint Joseph, and how he is known as a protector and caretaker. He also pointed out that he was wearing white vestments instead of the green we often see at mass. White is used in the Church for special celebrations and feast days, including celebrations of saints. We are so lucky to have Father Conrad and Father Jake helping guide our students in their faith, and days like today are a great reminder of how blessed we are to be part of this school community!

Phonics:
We continued practicing CVC words, blends, and digraphs. We also continued working with the /k/ sound and when to use c, k, or ck when spelling.

Reading & Writing:
We continued practicing what it looks like to be a good listener and a good speaker as we begin our Wit & Wisdom work. We also introduced our unit theme, A Season of Change. Students looked closely at four different paintings, each showing a different season, and shared what they noticed and what they wondered. Tomorrow we will continue exploring our theme through poetry and reading.

Math:
Today we worked on skip counting by 5s, 10s, and 100s. We also continued reviewing place value and strengthening our understanding of numbers up to 1,000.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes

Math: Complete page 5.6

Assessments: Our phonics assessment is planned for Friday. We are continuing to assess readiness in math, so the math assessment is currently planned for Friday but may be moved to next week if we feel students would benefit from more time to practice.

iReady

iReady Inform testing will continue this week and next. Please help your child come to school well rested, with a healthy breakfast, snack, and water bottle, and ready to do their best.

Reminders

Wednesday, 9/2: Media

Thursday, 9/3: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or smock if you have not already.

Thursday, 9/3: Curriculum Night. I am looking forward to welcoming you into our classroom and sharing more about what your child will be learning this year!

Friday, 9/4: Library and Music. Please remember to return library books.

Monday, 9/7: No School for Labor Day

Please continue to send a water bottle, healthy morning snack, and lunch each day. Thank you!

Monday, 8/31/26 - Updates

Happy final Monday of August! Everyone looked wonderful for Picture Day today, and they brought their smiles! Please see below for a few updates, reminders, and homework.

Phonics:
We continued practicing CVC words, blends, and digraphs. We also worked on the /k/ sound and when to use c, k, or ck when spelling.

Reading & Writing:
We started learning some of the routines we will use in Wit & Wisdom. Today we talked about what it looks like to be a good listener and a good speaker. These skills will be important as we continue reading, writing, and sharing ideas together.

Math:
We continued working with place value and practiced reading and writing numbers up to 1,000, including numbers written in standard form and word form.

Science:
We finished our work with biodiversity and animal classification and started thinking about habitats. We began wondering why a wild animal might choose a playground as its habitat.

Religion:
We learned about Saint Isidore, the patron saint of farmers and laborers. We also talked about how we are called to care for all of God’s creation, including animals.

Homework

Reading: Read for 20 minutes

Math: Complete page 5.5

iReady

iReady Inform testing will continue this week and next (if needed). Please help your child come to school well rested, with a healthy breakfast, snack, and water bottle, and ready to do their best. :)

Reminders

Tuesday 9/1: Gym. Please wear gym uniforms.

Tuesday 9/1: We will also attend our first All School Mass with our Buddies! We cannot wait!

Wednesday 9/2: Media

Thursday 9/3: STEAM and Art. Please send an oversized old T shirt or smock if you have not already.

Thursday, 9/3: Curriculum Night. I am looking forward to welcoming you into our classroom and sharing more about what your child will be learning this year!

Friday9/4: Library and Music. Please return library books.

Monday, 9/7: No School for Labor Day

Please continue to send a water bottle, healthy morning snack, and lunch each day. Thank you!

Week at a Glance - 8/31/26-9/4/26

Our class did GREAT today! We received lots of positive feedback from teachers around the school, and I was so proud of our 2nd graders! They have been working hard on our routines and expectations, and it was so nice to see that hard work being noticed. What a great way to end the week!

Math

We will continue working on place value next week. Students will practice reading and writing numbers to 1,000, using counting patterns, and comparing 3-digit numbers using >, <, and =. We will also spend time reviewing together before our first math assessment.

Our goal is to take the assessment on Friday, but if I feel like we need a little more time to practice, we will adjust as needed.

Phonics (FUNdations)

We will finish up Unit 1 as we continue reviewing CVC words, digraphs, and blends. We will also review the trick words was, said, you, and your.

Students will complete their Unit 1 assessment on Friday.

Reading and Writing (Wit & Wisdom)

We are excited to officially begin our first Wit & Wisdom module, A Season of Change! We will begin learning about weather and the different ways things can change throughout the seasons.

We will also continue building our reading and writing stamina while practicing how to write strong topic statements.

Science

We will continue our learning about animals and habitats as we explore the question: Why would a wild animal visit a playground?

Students will investigate bighorn sheep and compare their desert habitat to a playground. Through observations and a habitat scavenger hunt, we will talk about the living and nonliving things animals need in order to survive.

Religion

We will begin using our Religion books as we start Session 1: God Creates Us. We will talk about the Creation story and what it means to know God as our Creator.

This week, we also learned the second half of “Great Big God” with Mrs. Macdonald! The students did an amazing job learning both the song and the sign language that goes along with it. We will continue practicing it together and connecting it to our learning about God as our Creator and the beautiful world He made. God is so good!

Tests and Quizzes

Phonics Unit 1 Assessment: Friday, 9/4

Math Place Value Assessment: Friday, 9/4

Additional Reminders

Please try to attend Mass with your child over the weekend.

The **i-Ready Inform Window** is now open. We will complete our Reading and Math i-Ready assessments over the next couple of weeks. A good night’s sleep and a healthy breakfast are always helpful!

Monday, 8/31: Picture Day - Students may dress down or wear their uniform.

Tuesday: All-School Mass (Please note the change shared in Mrs. Hein’s email last week.)

Scholastic Book Orders: Orders are optional and are due by Friday, September 4.

Class page: https://orders.scholastic.com/337PJ2

Class code: 337PJ2

Monday, 9/7:Labor Day — No School

Please continue sending a water bottle, healthy morning snack, and lunch with your child each day.

Have a wonderful weekend! I am so proud of how much our class is already growing, and I am looking forward to another great week together!

Thursday, 8/27/26 - Updates

Hi families! We had another busy day in 2nd grade! We are continuing to settle into our routines, build our independence, and learn what it means to be a responsible, reverent, and respectful member of our school community.

Homework and Updates

Reading & Writing: We continued building our reading and writing stamina and practicing how to work independently. These routines take time to develop, and we will continue practicing each day as students become more confident and independent learners. No homework.

Phonics: We continued reviewing digraphs and blends and practicing how to recognize them within words. Students are working on using these skills to help them read and decode unfamiliar words. No homework.

Math: We continued reviewing place value and expanded form. Students are practicing identifying the value of each digit and representing numbers in different ways. Complete 5.3 Homework page and return to school.

A Reminder About Our 3 R's

We are continuing to work on our schoolwide expectations of being Responsible, Reverent, and Respectful throughout the entire school day. Today was a little more challenging for our class, particularly during specials and lunch.

We talked about how our 3 R's apply everywhere we go in our school, not just when we are in our classroom. We will continue practicing what it looks and sounds like to be respectful listeners, follow directions, make responsible choices, and show the same wonderful behavior for all of the teachers and staff members who work with us throughout the day.

A quick reminder at home about showing our 3 R's wherever we are in the building would be greatly appreciated!

A Few Reminders

Library Tomorrow: Please have students bring their library books back to school tomorrow so they are able to check out new books during Library.

Art: Please send an oversized old T-shirt or art smock for your child to use during Art class.

Monday, August 31: Picture Day

Scholastic Book Orders: These are completely optional! If you would like to order, the deadline is Friday, September 4th at the start of the school day. Class code: 337PJ2

Thursday, September 3: Curriculum Night

Our Specials

Friday: Library and Music — please remember library books!

Please remember to send a healthy snack (no cookies, candy, or sweet treats), lunch, and water bottle each day.

Thank you for your continued support as we learn and grow together!