Week at a Glance

Week of October 25-29, 2021

Math: This past week we used different addition strategies to add two-digit numbers. These strategies included counting on, using 100s charts, and drawing base-ten blocks. Next week we will transition to using the standard algorithm of addition (which is probably how you were taught) to add 2 two-digit numbers and 3 two-digit numbers. Students can continue to use the learning tools to help them as needed.

Science: As we near Halloween, we will explore the purpose of bones in our bodies, specifically our skulls as we explore the Mystery Science question “What would happen if we didn’t have a skull?” We will also discover why pumpkins are orange (time permitting). 

Language Arts: We will continue working with adding suffixes to base words and using them correctly in sentences to indicate the past, present, and future tenses. During our writing time, we will transition to informative writing. Students will practice finding and writing facts, generating questions for research, and writing complete sentences to form an informational paragraph.

Reading: Our phonics skills this week will focus on reading and spelling words with r-controlled (“bossy r”) syllables (-ar, -or, -er, -ir, -ur). We will also read our daily short stories in our Superkids decodable reader to practice fluency and comprehension skills. Our "Lasting Lesson" this week is about working cooperatively with others. We will also transition from our nonfiction Super magazines back to fictional texts for small group instruction.

Social Studies: No Social Studies - see Science

Religion: On Monday we will meet our 8th grade prayer buddies and complete an activity with them. The rest of the week we will focus on the topic of saints as we prepare for the feast of All Saints Day (November 1st), and we will specifically learn about Saint John Bosco for our class saint poster.

Tests and Quizzes:

• No tests next week
• Spelling Test = Tuesday, 11/2 (the new list will go home Monday, 10/25)

Additional Reminders:

• Thank you for taking time for conferences.
• Please take your child to Mass this weekend.
• Socktober = now through the end of the month (10/29) - Please send in new socks for the food pantry and other Saint Joseph organizations.
• Food Pantry Collection = Thursday, 10/28 - Thank you in advance for your generosity!
• Halloween Class Party and Dress Down Day = Friday, 10/29
  • Students may dress in costumes, as per the guidelines set forth from the administration. You should receive these guidelines in the coming days.
  • Students may not pass out candy. (Students will get snacks at the party after lunch.)

• number chart (see student planner)
• drawing base ten blocks
• using expanded form to add tens and ones

• If you have already signed up for a conference, thank you. Please take note of the time, as they run close together, and we only have ten minutes to meet.
• If you have not yet signed up, please review the email that was sent out last week to see how to sign up.
• Please return the Pre-Conference Questionnaire at your earliest convenience. Thank you for taking time to fill this out.

1. Read 20 (or more minutes)
2. Math - Addition practice page
   • Please note, there are only 4 questions. Students should show their work. They can draw a number line, draw base-ten blocks, use the hundreds chart in their planner, or use any other tools that they find helpful.
3. Spelling - Practice words for Wednesday's test

• Spelling Test and Reading Progress Assessment = Wednesday
• Parent Teacher Conferences = Thursday --> No school for students
• Friday = No school for students
• Mass = Tuesday - Our class will attend virtually this week.

Week at a Glance

Week of October 18-22, 2021

Math: We will skip ahead in our Math books to Chapter 3. (Chapter 2 includes lessons on skip counting and arrays, both of which we covered in our previous book at the beginning of this year.) This chapter will help us build a foundation for addition of multi-digit numbers. We will assist students in determining what strategies work for them (drawing base-ten blocks, counting on, using expanded form to add with mental math, etc.). We will also work toward the standard algorithm used for regrouping. Students will continue to work daily to build their addition and subtraction fact fluency with numbers up to 20.

Science: We will learn about different types of birds and what they eat. With the help of our Mystery Science videos and discussions, we will work on designing and building bird feeders to attract a specific type of bird.

Language Arts: Students will work to form strong opinion sentences and support those with reasons while writing an opinion paragraph. We will also review how to edit and revise our writing as we seek to always make improvements. During our Reading block, we will also review different tenses of verbs and how to add suffixes to change the meanings of words (-ed, -ing).

Reading: During our Phonics lessons, we will work on adding suffixes to base words. We will specifically focus on adding -ing and -ed and what happens when a base word ends in -y. We will work daily to decode texts from our Superkids reader and to read with expression. Our Super Magazines will help us focus on comprehension of informational text, and we will continue to read our daily fictional texts.

Social Studies: None - See Science

Religion: This week we will discuss how Jesus is the “bread of life” and how he gave his life for us. We will also review symbols from the liturgical season of Ordinary Time. We did not get to much of this session last week due to our monthly visit from our counselor, Mrs. Han, and due to our Godparents’ Day prayer service.

Tests and Quizzes:

• Spelling Test = Wednesday, 10/20
• Reading Progress Assessment = Wednesday, 10/20 (no studying needed)

Additional Reminders:

• Please return the Pre-Conference Questionnaire at your earliest convenience. Thank you for taking time to fill this out.
• Parent/Teacher Conferences - Please follow the directions outlined in the email that was sent to you on how to sign up for a conference. I look forward to discussing your child’s progress with you, along with ways to continue supporting your child at home.
• There is no school for students on Thursday, 10/21, or on Friday, 10/22.
• Please take your child to Mass this weekend.

• Please fill out and return the "Pre-Conference Questionnaire" that went home today. (Please keep the rest of the packet at home for your reference.)
• Spelling Test and Reading Progress Assessment = Wednesday, 10/20
• Special Food Drive = October 17th - Please see the flyer that went home today for more information.
• Godparents’ Day = Friday, October 15th 
• Health Forms are due Friday, October 15th.
• Socktober = now through the end of the month (10/29) - Please send in new socks for the food pantry and other Saint Joseph organizations.

• If your child is struggling with this concept at home, consider having him/her use an extra piece of paper and drawing it out or using a related subtraction fact.
  • Example: 6 + ___ = 11
    • Solve by 11-6 = ___.
    • Solve by drawing 6 dots and then adding more dots until s/he reaches 11. Then count the dots s/he added.

• Spelling test = Thursday
• Godparents’ Day = Friday, October 15th - Please remember this event is for the second grade students and their godparents (or godparent substitutes) only.
  • If you did not yet sign up with the Google Form, please do so.
• Health Forms are due Friday, October 15th.
• Socktober = now through the end of the month (10/29) - Please send in new socks for the food pantry and other Saint Joseph organizations.

Week at a Glance

October 11-15, 2021

Math: As we continue working on our flexible thinking and problem solving skills with adding and subtracting, we will solve for missing addends, use fact families to solve addition and subtraction problems, and solve two-step word problems. We will determine what strategies (e.g., drawing a picture, visualizing, writing number sentences, etc.) work best to help us in our understanding.

Science: With the help of our Mystery Science videos and activities, we will use our listening skills to identify frog sounds in different environments. If time permits, we will also explore the mini lesson topic of who invented pizza.

Language Arts: During Writing time, we will work on writing opinion statements, supporting our opinions with reasons, and forming opinion paragraphs. We will also start to review our print handwriting (in preparation for cursive later in the year).

Reading: During our daily phonics instruction and routines, we will identify base words and explore the rules for writing plural words and for writing words in the past tense. We will practice our fluency during our daily reading in our decodable Superkids readers. Additionally, we will work on our informational text comprehension strategies during small group instruction with our Super magazine.

Social Studies: No Social Studies - see Science

Religion: This week we will discuss how Jesus is the “bread of life” and how he gave his life for us. We will also review symbols from the liturgical season of Ordinary Time.

Tests and Quizzes:

• Spelling Test = Thursday, 10/14 - See list

Additional Reminders:

• No school = Monday, October 11th - Enjoy the long weekend!
• Bears/Packers dress down day will be on Thursday, October 14th for the second grade students due to the Godparents Day prayer service on Friday, 10/15. (The rest of the school will have the dress down day on Friday.)
• Godparents’ Day = Friday, October 15th - Please remember this event is for the second grade students and their godparents (or godparent substitutes) only.
  • If you did not yet sign up with the Google Form, please do so.
• Please take your child to Mass over the weekend.
• Health Forms are due Friday, October 15th.
  • SJCS is required by the State of Illinois and The Archdiocese of Chicago to maintain health records for every student. Below is a summary of the requirements by grade level and all forms are due no later than October 15th. Failure to submit the required health information by this date will result in exclusion from school until the forms are received.
  • Please contact Mrs. Wegener ([email protected]) with any questions.
• Mass = Tuesday, October 12th - We will attend in person. All are welcome to join us to pray.
• Socktober = now through the end of the month (10/29) - Please send in new socks for the food pantry and other Saint Joseph organizations.