Super Mrs. Wells

Today was dress like your favorite superhero.  I'm not one to miss out on the fun so I joined in.

This week we did some research on weather.  We researched different types of weather like storms, tornadoes, snow and rainbows.  Then we wrote and presented reports to each other.

We started a poetry unit in writing.  We started by taking a nature walk and choosing some topics in nature that we wanted to write about.  We tried using our imagination and seeing things differently through a poet's eyes.  We learned about putting line breaks in our poems too.

In science, we did a fun gas experiment with Mrs. Taylor's gas. Then learned about how the particles look in solids, liquids and gases.  We created a model to help us understand this concept.

In math, we finished up with clocks and have moved onto money.  Several students still do need practice telling time.  Many get confused with the hour hand.  Whenever possible, try to practice at home.  We are doing really well so far with coin counting.  Next week we will start adding money and doing word problems involving money.

Our penny war for our playground is going great.  Our penny bucket is very full.  Great job parents. Next week, the bombing starts!!  Let's go 2-Wells!! Bring in those silver coins and dollar bills.  

Have a great weekend.

We All Just Wanna Be Big Rock Stars!!

This week we finished up our class book and it is on its way to be published.  I'm so excited to see the finished product.  One of our lucky students even designed the cover.

Since our book was complete, we started a new writing project.  We wrote a narrative about what it would be like to trade places with our favorite TV, movie or rock star.  The students had some great ideas like riding in limos, performing in concerts and just spending a lot of money.

This week we read poems about nature in reading.  We talked about how the poet shows his or her feelings in writing.  We found similies and rhyming words in the poems.  We also discussed the theme or message of the poems.  

We started practicing telling time in math.  This is a skill that needs some practice. Any practice you can do at home is very helpful.  The expectation is that second graders should be able to tell time to the nearest five minutes.  We played time bingo today for some extra practice.

In science we compared the properties of solids to the properties of liquids.  We found some similiarities like they both have color.  We also discovered that one thing they do not have in common is shape, liquid takes the shape of whatever you put it in.  In social studies we read about how communities get bigger and smaller when people move in or out. Sometimes, communities get run down and must be rebuilt.  The students were asked to take a run down community and decide whether to rebuild some buildings or fix them up. 

Today is the first day of spring.  Someone needs to let Mother Nature know that...snow is falling!!

Make sure you check out the class news page for the updated school calendar.

Spring has Sprung!!

After a snowy week last week, it looks like winter may be over.  Let's hope!!

Last week, in celebration of Dr. Seuss's birthday, we read The Cat in the Hat.  We then wrote about what we would do if those two silly characters, Thing 1 and Thing 2, came to our house.  We wrote about they would get in, what they would do while they were there and how we would get them to leave.

This week we were introduced to several folktales.  We read some fun and silly stories that tried to explain something in nature to us.  In one story "Why the Sun and Moon Live in the Sky", the Sun wanted to invite his friend, Water, to his house.  Sun and his wife, Moon, thought that was the right thing to do since Water was their friend.  In the end, Sun and Moon could not live in their house because Water took it over,  The lesson of the story was about how important it is to have a friend.

We finished up our Measuring unit today with a Unit Test.  These will be sent home to be signed and returned.  Next week we will be starting on Time and Money.

We started working on our class book this week.  You should have received an order form for the book.  If you are not interested in purchasing the book, please just check no and return the form.  This needs to be returned in order for us to receive a free book for the classroom.  The title of the book will be How To Be a Good Second Grader.

In social studies we started a unit on How Communities Change.  In one of our lessons, we started with a new, small community where people were beginning to move.  These people had several different needs.  Therefore, we had to add things to the community.  For example, there were people moving in who had children.  So, we added a school and a playground.  

In science, we mixed liquids.  We predicted what would happen when we mixed shampoo, oil and glue to water.  Many of the students were surprised to see that the oil and water did not mix. 

Have a nice weekend.  Looks like rain...at least it's not snow.