Week of Aug. 31 - Sept. 4

Helpful Highlights

ZOOM CONFERENCES

Formal conferences will be held via Zoom on September 17th and 18th.  These will be half-days for students.  Carline will begin at 11:15.  Flipside will be available on these days.  Teachers will send out a Sign-Up Genius to your email for you to sign up for a time.  Be sure to sign up!  We are looking forward to meeting virtually with each of you!

SPELLING / CAPITALIZATION POINT DEDUCTIONS

Starting the first week of September, we wanted to let you know that words that are misspelled / not capitalized correctly, when there is a word bank or text provided, will be counted off -1 point, up to 5 points.  We encourage the students to check carefully and take pride in their work!

TIMED MATH DRILLS - Math Fact drills began this week. Here are some key things to remember:

• 1 minute 40 seconds for 25 problems

• Practice math fact drill taken on Monday, final one on Friday.  If you get a 100 on the Practice, you do not have to take the one on Friday!  We do have a Challenge Speed Drill for fun, for those who want to take it.  It has 30 problems!

• Second grade mastery: +/- facts to 20

HELP CLASS

• Help Class is available for students that need extra guidance or reteaching of the material covered in class. Help Class is not a time for a student to complete homework.

• Begins after Labor Day.

• Teacher may contact the parent requesting the student to stay or parents may request Help Class by contacting the teacher in advance.  TIME:  2:30 - 3:00

• Miss Davis - Mondays

• Mrs. Floresta - Wednesdays

• Mrs. Romine - Fridays

Loving Learning

Right now, we are loving learning about:

Bible - Adam:  How Sin Began and defining the word, “dominion”  

Phonics / Spelling - 

Spelling Focus:  Three Letter Blends - str, scr, spl, spr, squ, thr, shr

Grammar / Creative Writing -  Types of Sentences - Statements, Questions, Exclamations, and Commands.

Reading - We began our first unit of Foundations & Frameworks.

• Comprehension Focus:  Sequence of Events

• Pattern Statement - there is an order to how things happen; but, not everything that happens is important.

• Visual Tool:  Flow Chart

• SPECS Logs: Reader’s Response, Visual Tool, Reflection (Today, I learned…..)

• Vocabulary:  nibble, cluck, scold, invent, boxcar, telegraph, patrol, clammy

Math - Students will be comparing numbers:  identifying even and odd numbers, as well as skip counting patterns.

Science - We will be wrapping up our Plants Unit.  We will learn about George Washington Carver and crop rotation.  On Tuesday, a study guide will come home for the test on Thursday.

Save the Date

September 7 -  Labor Day - No school

September 8 - Pumpkin Book Report Information comes home in blue folders

September 28 - Oct. 2 - Fall Break!!!

Week of Aug. 24 - 28

 Helpful Highlights

BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT - Thank you to all the parents for participating in 2nd grade’s Virtual Back to School Night. We consider it a privilege to partner with you this year and to help your child grow academically and spiritually.

HOMEWORK - Regular homework routine began this past week. A homework sheet will go home every Monday. Please have your child complete his/her homework; then, a parent should check and sign by that day. Homework is a review and should be completed by the student. Here are a few homework tips:

• Set up a homework-friendly area. Keep supplies within reach.

• Schedule a regular study time. For example, some kids work best in the afternoon, following a snack and play period.

• Keep distractions to a minimum.

• Make sure kids do their own work. They won't learn if they don't think for themselves and make their own mistakes. Parents can make suggestions and help with directions, but it's a student's job to do the learning. 

• Be a motivator and monitor. Give encouragement, check completed homework, and make yourself available for questions and concerns.

• Praise their work and efforts. Post an aced test or art project on the refrigerator. Mention academic achievements to relatives. (kidshealth.org)

ICE CREAM FRIDAYS - Ice cream is served on Fridays, in the lunchroom. Please inform your child if you would like for him/her to purchase ice cream. You can do this ahead of time on FACTS; or, we can add it when we take morning lunch count. 

TIMED MATH DRILLS - Math Fact drills begin the week of August 24th. Here are some key things to remember:

• 1 minute 40 seconds for 25 problems

• Practice math fact drill taken on Monday, final one on Friday.  If you get a 100 on the Practice, you do not have to take the one on Friday!

• Second grade mastery: +/- facts to 20

WEEKLY ASSESSMENTS - Informal weekly assessments, such as a Check Your Progress or Comprehension Check will not be announced. A review will not be sent home for informal assessments. Adequate instructional time and independent practice is given as we teach the students to become responsible for their learning. If students are engaged, participating in class, asking questions, and checking over their work they have a better chance of being successful! Formal tests such as end of unit math, science, or reading tests will be announced via the homework sheet (printed in red), and a study guide will be provided at least 2 days in advance.

Here is an outline of consistent weekly assessments:

Monday - Math Fact Drill Pre-test

Friday - Bible Verse Test, Spelling Test, and Math Fact Drill Final

* Thank you for your support as we equip our students to become independent thinkers!

HELP CLASS

• Help Class is available for students that need extra guidance or reteaching of the material covered in class. Help Class is not a time for a student to complete homework.

• Begins after Labor Day.

• Teacher may contact the parent requesting the student to stay or parents may request Help Class by contacting the teacher in advance.  TIME:  2:30 - 3:00

• Miss Davis - Mondays

• Mrs. Floresta - Wednesdays

• Mrs. Romine - Fridays

Loving Learning

Right now, we are loving learning about:

Bible - God’s Creation - Create means to make something out of nothing.  We will talk about God creating man in His own image and the difference in God vs. gods.   

Phonics / Spelling - 

Spelling Focus:  Vowel Teams - when 2 vowels go walking, the first one does the talking. 

Grammar / Creative Writing -  We will continue learning about sentences - making a complete thought, beginning with a capital letter and ending with a punctuation mark, distinguishing b/w the naming (subject) part and the action (verb) part.

Reading - We begin our first unit of Foundations & Frameworks.

Comprehension Focus:  Sequence of Events

• Pattern Statement - there is an order to how things happen; but, not everything that happens is important.

• Visual Tool:  Flow Chart

• SPECS Logs: Reader’s Response, Visual Tool, Reflection (Today, I learned…..)

• Vocabulary:  nibble, cluck, scold, invent, boxcar, telegraph, patrol, clammy

Math - Students will use addition and subtraction to write equivalent names for numbers. We will reinforce place-value concepts by skip counting on calculators.  Students will build fact fluency by finding combinations of 10.

Science - We will continue learning about plants through 3 experiments:  Do Leaves Breathe?, Plant Growth Observation, and Can I Eat a Whole Plant?

Save the Date

September 7 -  Labor Day - No school

September 8 - Pumpkin Book Report Information comes home in blue folders

September 28 - Oct. 2 - Fall Break!!!

Week of August 17-21

Helpful Highlights

GETTING STARTED ON THE RIGHT FOOT 

As we get back into the swing of things please check the grade level website http://nccssecondgrade.blogspot.com/, Friday Folders, Homework Sheets, and the school website for all dates and important information. 

HOMEWORK

We hope you love the blue homework folders, provided by NCCS!  Your student should bring this folder home each night.  Look inside on the “Return to School” side, to find the weekly homework sheet.  This will list the homework assignments, as well as important information.  EVENTS will be listed in blue.  TESTS and STUDY GUIDES will be listed in red.  Please check over your child’s homework each night, and initial at the bottom. Students who complete their homework for all 4 nights (Monday - Thursday) will receive a reward on Friday!

CIRCLE OF PRAYER - Circle of Prayer will take place virtually on Tuesday, August 18th.  We love taking the time to pray over our class, school, state, and nation. Parents, guests, all students and staff will be joining together virtually this year for a time of worship and prayer. May our prayers blanket our school this year!

BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT – Second Grade's Back to School Night will take place virtually this year.  Mrs. Titus will send you the link to our video on Tuesday, August 18th.  If you still have questions after viewing the video, you can join the Zoom Meeting with your child’s teacher on Thursday night (Aug. 20th) from 7:30-8:00.  Your child’s teacher will send you an email invite to the meeting.

CAR LINE - To help car line run smoothly next week, please do the following:

• Make sure your car line number is hanging from the rear view mirror. It is difficult to see when it falls down low on the dash and slows down the calling of numbers.

• Take down the card AFTER your child has been loaded into your vehicle. This way we know which numbers to recall.

• Please stay in your car. If you wish to help buckle your child, please park and then get out.

• Please inform other family members of the car line rules to ensure a safe and efficient car line.

FRIDAY FOLDERS - Each Friday, your child will bring home her/his Friday Folder (which looks like a very large white envelope):

1. The folder will have your child’s work from the week and important notes.
2. There will also be special announcements concerning any pertinent information from Second Grade. 
3. Go through the folder with your child. Have him/her take initiative! If you see problem areas on their work, practice those with your child.
4. Please empty and return the folder on the following Monday.

FIRST BIBLE AND SPELLING TESTS 

Our first spelling test over List 1 and our first graded Bible test over Deuteronomy 31:8 (ESV) will be on Friday, August 21st. Great ways to practice at home are to rainbow write, write on a whiteboard, type on the computer, writing words in sentences, spell/say out loud to family members, and word/letter scrambles. Make it fun! Practicing for spelling and Bible will be part of the regular homework routine. Each Friday we will have a “fill in the blank” verse test. It will include a word bank for the first 2 trimesters. The last trimester will not have a word bank. NCCS is using the English Standard Version Bible.

TIMED MATH DRILLS 

Math Fact drills begin the week of August 17th. Students will have 1 minute and 40 seconds to complete 25 math facts. Pretests will be taken on Monday. A final Math Fact Drill is taken on Friday. If the student receives 100% on the pretest he/she will not have to take the Drill on Friday!

WEEKLY ASSESSMENTS 

Informal weekly assessments, such as a Check Your Progress or comprehension checks will not be announced.  A review will not be sent home for informal assessments. Adequate instructional time and independent practice is given as we teach the students to become responsible for their learning. If students are engaged, participating in class, asking questions, and checking over their work, they have a better chance of being successful!  Formal tests, such as end of unit math, science, or reading tests will be announced via the grade level website.  They will also be listed on their homework sheets.  Study Guides will come home at least 2 days in advance.

Here is an outline of consistent weekly assessments:

Monday - Math Fact Drill Pre-test 

Thursday - Periodic Phonics Assessments

Friday - Bible Verse Test, Math Fact Drill Final, and Spelling Test

* Thank you for your support as we equip our students to become independent thinkers!

Loving Learning

Right now, we are loving learning about:

Bible - God’s Promises and Heaven 

Phonics / Spelling 

Spelling Focus: Floss rule - In a 1 syllable word with a short vowel that ends in f,l,s,or z, double the consonant at the end. Ex:  bell

Grammar / Creative Writing -  Sentences vs. Fragments, Parts of a Sentence (subject and action), 4 Types of Sentences (Telling, Command, Exclamation, Question)

Reading - We are assessing students’ current reading levels, through the RAZ evaluations.  Foundations and Frameworks will begin on August 19th.

Math - Students will make a class number scroll from 0 to 1,000 using place-value strategies, use patterns on a number grid to solve an open response problem, and use addition and subtraction to write equivalent names for numbers.

Science - We will continue learning about the parts of a plant, seed growth, and photosynthesis.

Save the Date

August 20 - Back to School Night (virtual) - look for link in your email.

September 7 - Labor Day - No School!

September 28 through October 2 - FALL BREAK!!!

Welcome Back 2020

Helpful Highlights

GETTING STARTED ON THE RIGHT FOOT 

As we get back into the swing of things please check the grade level website http://nccssecondgrade.blogspot.com/, Friday Folders, Homework Sheets, and the school website for all dates and important information.