Greetings Seussville Alumni! I miss you already and I hope your summer is off to a relaxing and wonderful start.  Summer is such a perfect time to recharge our batteries, enjoy the sunshine, and slow down a bit.  It is also an excellent opportunity to continue learning.  Even though you aren’t coming to the classroom every day, you are still learning and might not even realize it.  It might look a bit different but can be just as much fun AND help you develop the lifelong learner habit.

Summer is one of the times when I am able to catch up on professional development (learning for teachers).  I came across a blog post and some tweets last week that inspired me and I just had to share them with you.

1. #IMWAYR (It’s Monday! What Are You Reading): This is a hashtag on Twitter where people from all over the world are sharing what they’re reading every Monday. This of course got the gears in my brain thinking.  How could I incorporate this over the summer?  PADLET! One of the very best things you can do this summer is read.  Read every day.  Read all types of books and texts.  Then share your reading with others.  Start your very own reading challenge.  Will you try to read every Caldecott Medal winner book? Or is there a series of books you have been anxiously awaiting time to dig into?!  What better time to do that then NOW!  Here’s how it will work: every Monday during the summer, head on over to our #IMWAYR Padlet.  Post a picture of what you are currently reading.  Then write the title and author and perhaps what you love about it or if you recommend this book to others and why.  Your picture should include you and the book in whatever creative way you choose!  You could even give a brief summary (What makes a really good summary?) or a short book review (Who can remember how to organize one?).  Then if you are ever stuck on what to read next, head on over to the Padlet for some fresh book recommendations.  If you scroll all the way down to the bottom of this Padlet, you can see some posts from Seussville Alumni last summer.  You never know when a surprise guest might post on our Padlet too! 🙂

https://padlet.com/spitzer/IMWAYR

2. Summer Reading Bingo..er…Reado: Are you wanting to read this summer but aren’t sure where to even start?! Have no fear READO is here! I created a Summer Bingo (READO) card.  In each tile is a type of book you can read.  Be sure to check out the bottom of the card for fun prizes.  If you decide to compete for the prizes, please sign the bottom, have your parent(s) sign it, and return it to school on August 15, 2017 (the first day of school!)

Summer Reading Bingo Card

3. #KidsWritingLife : I was reading a blog post the other day that inspired me and reminded me that just because it is summer, doesn’t mean our writing lives should stop. They also mentioned a book I had never heard of before called The Scraps Book by Lois Ehlert.  In this book the author talks about what inspired her to create art and write books.  She even shares some of her brainstorming techniques and story inspirations.  This book was by far the coolest book ever and I just had to share it with you too.  Check out the video I created of it below:

After you have watched the video, I want you to think about your own writing life.  What are things that inspire you?  What objects do you have that you could turn into a story?! Have you found a new treasure, made a new memory, or created something amazing? What can you collect or look for outside that could become your next great writing piece?  Take what you learned during the school year, inspiration from The Scraps book, and head over to our #KidsWritingLife Padlet every Monday and write! It can be about any topic, any genre, and be as long or as short as you want.  I recommend trying all different types of writing this summer and encourage you to write about science, math, social studies, nature, vacation, and the world around you.  Feel free to include media (pictures/videos) too if you wish.  Please make sure to have a title and include your name on each piece. You learn to write better by reading.  You learn to read better by writing. Reading and writing work together to improve your ability to think.

https://padlet.com/spitzer/KidsWritingLife

Kids Writing Life Blog Post Inspiration

4. Symbaloo: Remember your Log-In cards also went home this summer too. Please feel free to use any of tiles on the Symbaloo page to continue learning at home.
https://sososeussey.edublogs.org/1-fish-2-fish-seussville-tech-fish/

Last but certainly not least, make sure to take some time to relax, play, sit in the sun, draw with chalk, blow bubbles, take a walk, ride your bike, laugh, eat popcorn, have a movie night, and enjoy your family.  I miss you but I’m look forward to interacting with you on our Padlets!  Happy reading, writing, and math fact practicing!

Dear Families;

I give you back your child, the same child you confidently entrusted to my care last fall.  I give them back, inches taller, months wiser, more responsible, and more mature than they were then.  Although they would have attained this growth in spite of me, it has been my pleasure and privilege to watch their personality unfold day by day.  I give them back reluctantly, for having spent nine months together in the narrow confines of a classroom, we have grown and we shall always retain a little bit of each other.

Ten years from now if we met on the street, your child and I, a light will shine to our eyes, a smile to our face, and we shall feel the bond of understanding once more, this bond we feel today.  We have lived, loved, laughed, played, studied, learned, and enriched our lives together this year.  I wish it could go on indefinitely, but give them back I must.  Remember that I shall always be interested in your child and their destiny, wherever they go, whatever they do, whoever they become.  Their joys and sorrows I’ll always be happy to share.

Thanks for your support and all that you have done to make our year complete! Check out our year as a Seussville citizen in our video below.  Here’s to a successful year of learning and for the many more successful years to come.  Remember Dr. Seuss says, “Don’t cry because it’s over.  Smile because it happened!”

What was your favorite part of second grade?  What did you enjoy learning the most?  I would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below!

~*The Pitzer Post*~

May 22-24, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

We have completed all 16 themes of our reading and writing curriculum! WHOO! I am so proud of all of our hard work this year.  We have learned the following:

Vocabulary Words:
We learned 96 vocabulary words this year:

cabin, visit, memory, tradition, relatives, generation, rely, role, member, identity, sibling, symbol, fascinate, exploration, journal, measure, calendar, interval, daily, orbit, position, solar, ray, rotate, crossing, rural, build, purpose, social, urban, reside, route, state, journey, boundary, terrain, essential, wheel, machine, reduce, labor, effort, attract, magnet, object, operate, field, effect, result, vote, wait, government, duty, election, contribute, police, volunteer, participate, influence, emergency, nourished, farming, maintain, bounty, various, produce, freight, consume, distribute, available, taste, range, interest, earn, increase, value, browse, spend, market, business, prepare, provide, obtain, wages, droplet, puddle, cause, stage, transform, precipitation, fresh, careless, amount, critical, parched,  and drought

Your child should be able to define each word and use it in a sentence correctly!

Phonics Patterns
We learned 62 patterns this year:

diagraphs (ph, th, ch, sh), short vowels, ake, ine, oke, ute, ail, ain, ay, eed, ea, eat, oat, ow, ue, ui, or, orn, art, ir, urn, air, eer, ear, ore, are, ire, oom, ew, au, aw, awn, alk, all, ood, ook, ank, ink, unk, ice, age, arge, oil, oy, ound, out, ow, contractions, kn, wr, dge, tch, adjectives with er and est, prefix un, suffixes (ful, less, er, ly), plurals ( s, es), plurals (y to an i and add es), y plus er & est, verbs (ending in ed), verbs (ending in ing), and compound words

Your child should be able to spell and read words correctly with the above patterns!

Genres
We learned 8 genres this year in writing:

personal narrative, expository (informational)/observation log, letter, biography, opinion/response to literature, story (realistic, fantasy, humorous, fable, mystery, fairy tale, and folktale), poetry and procedural text!

Your child should be able to explain what each type of genre is, provide examples of books and write text that would fall into to one of these genres!

We were also able to get to 40 minutes of guided reading stamina! WOW!  Next week, we will review what we have learned in creative and neat ways!

Math

Wow we were able to complete 15 chapters in math this year! In those chapters we learned the following concepts:

Place value to 1,000, addition with and without regrouping to 1,000, subtraction with and without regrouping to 1,000, bar models, multiplication, division, balanced equations, metric measurement, money, fractions, time, picture graphs, lines & surfaces, shapes & patterns.

The most important skills to take away from second grade are the first four concepts listed.  Those are skills your child should have mastered or be very close to mastery.  We also learned stamina.  We sometimes have to try, erase, try, erase and try again.  It is hard but when we apply what we have learned and use our critical thinking and problem solving skills, we can do wonderful things!

Next week will be spent reviewing our skills in fun and engaging ways!

MIFEnd_of_Year_Letter

Upcoming Events

Monday, May 22, 2017 

• Lunch: Hot Dog
• BEACH DAY!
  • Your child can bring a beach towel, sunglasses, sandals, hat, etc. (no bathing suits, please)
• Visitors can join us for our last reading camp beach front style! 9:30am-10:00
• Followed by the premiere of our end of the year movie
• Yearbook signing in the Gym/Playground @2pm

Tuesday, May 23, 2017 

• Lunch: Cheese Pizza

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

• Lunch: Sub Sandwich
• Last Day of School @1pm

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• Wrapping up our reading, writing and math curriculum
• Selecting 5 books for our #SummerShelfie reading challenge
  • A note coming home with more details!
• Realizing just how much we have learned this year
• Creating compound word posters to highlight what we learned about this phonics pattern
• Designing a picture made entirely of shapes in Google Drawings
• Working hard to level up on the super improver wall
• Meeting our end of the year goal in World Language and getting to wear our PJs to school
• Celebrating AR and perfect attendance accomplishments at the DGS awards ceremony

~*The Pitzer Post*~

May 15-19, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Click the link to view our upcoming theme skills!
Theme 16 (week two)
Phonics Words: backyard, flashlight, landscape, upstairs, weekend, isn’t, lost, watermelon, yellow
Vocab Words:  critical, parched, drought
Grammar Skill: Review Simple vs. Compound Sentences

Math

Chapter 18: Lines & Surfaces
Vocabulary: part of a line, curve, flat surface, curved surface, slide, stack, roll
Objectives:

• Recognize, identify, and describe parts of lines and curves
• Draw parts of lines and curves
• Identify, classify, and count flat and curved surfaces
• Identify solids that can stack, slide, and/or roll

Chapter 19: Shapes & Patterns
Vocabulary: plane shape, hexagon, trapezoid, figure, pattern, pattern unit, shape, repeating pattern, size, turning
Objectives:

• Recognize and identify plane shapes
• Combine smaller plane shapes to make larger plane shapes
• Separate larger plane shapes into smaller plane shapes
• Combine and separate plane shapes into figures
• Draw plane shapes and figures on dot paper and square grid paper
• Recognize and identify solid shapes
• Build models using solid shapes
• Combine and separate solid shapes

MIFChapter18
MIFChapter19

Second Step

This week students were able to apply Second Step skills in a fun and collaborative way with Mrs. Weiss’ class.  We are working collaboratively to design a slide that reviews the skills we have learned this year.  Students were placed in groups and are using Google Slides to focus on one particular skill.  We can’t wait to show you the finished project!

Science

Check out this cool video about the water cycle!

We now know important words like evaporation, water vapor, and precipitation (vocab word!) We’ve also had great discussions about ways to save and reuse water on our planet.

Upcoming Events

Monday, May 15, 2017 

• Lunch: Turkey/Cheese Croissant
• “critical” note card comes home, due Tuesday
• STAR Math Testing this week!

Tuesday, May 16, 2017 

• Lunch: Nachos
• “drought” and “parched” note cards come home, due Wednesday
• Potbelly Night for Awesome Addison 5pm-8pm

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

• Lunch: Corn Dogs
• STEM Mayhem

Thursday, May 18, 2017

• Lunch: Chicken Nuggets
• 5^th Grade Rocket Launch @12:50pm
• Phonics paper due tomorrow

Friday, May 19, 2017

• Lunch: Cheese Quesadilla
• DGS Awards Ceremony 9am
• DGS Night at Peoria Chiefs Game @6:30pm

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• Learning how vital specific directions are when writing a procedural text
• Teach-Okay: we love to teach our friends what we are learning during lessons.
• Tweeting out our learning throughout the day so our families and the world can see how cool it is to be a Seussville citizen
• Defining what second grade means to us
• Exploring geometry through HyperDocs

~*The Pitzer Post*~

May 8-12, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Click the link to view our upcoming theme skills!
Theme 16 (week one)
Phonics Words: driving, running, shining, trying, waiting, ask, next, delaying, studying
Vocab Words:  fresh, careless, amount
Grammar Skill: Other joining words: but, or, so

Math

Chapter 18: Lines & Surfaces
Vocabulary: part of a line, curve, flat surface, curved surface, slide, stack, roll
Objectives:

• Recognize, identify, and describe parts of lines and curves
• Draw parts of lines and curves
• Identify, classify, and count flat and curved surfaces
• Identify solids that can stack, slide, and/or roll

Chapter 19: Shapes & Patterns
Vocabulary: plane shape, hexagon, trapezoid, figure, pattern, pattern unit, shape, repeating pattern, size, turning
Objectives:

• Recognize and identify plane shapes
• Combine smaller plane shapes to make larger plane shapes
• Separate larger plane shapes into smaller plane shapes
• Combine and separate plane shapes into figures
• Draw plane shapes and figures on dot paper and square grid paper
• Recognize and identify solid shapes
• Build models using solid shapes
• Combine and separate solid shapes

MIFChapter18
MIFChapter19

Second Step

This week we learned the importance of playing fairly on the playground.  We used S.T.E.P. to help friends solve their problems and came up with impressive solutions.  Can your child explain STEP? (don’t forget the motions)  How can they use S.T.E.P. at home?

Upcoming Events

Monday, May 8, 2017

• Lunch: Cheeseburger
• “fresh” note card comes home, due Tuesday
• STAR READING TEST!

Tuesday, May 9, 2017

• Lunch: Chicken Alfredo
• Field Trip money is due today
• “careless” and “amount” note cards come home, due Wednesday
• Parent’s Club Meeting 7pm
• DHS Cookie Sales

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

• Lunch: Bring cold lunch ( we are eating at 10:20am due to our field trip)
• Field Trip to Linden Hill Dairy Farm: bus leaves at 11am and will return by 2pm

Thursday, May 11, 2017

• Lunch: Spaghetti and Meat Sauce
• Phonics paper due tomorrow
• Talent Show Auditions for St. Jude Benefit

Friday, May 12, 2017

• Lunch: Bosco Sticks
• Muffins for Moms 7am-7:30am

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• Exploring life on a dairy farm
  • Did you know cows have 4 stomachs?!
• Utilizing HyperDocs to explore picture graphs, Earth Day, and Procedural Texts
• Practicing time management on Chromebooks with timers and learning menus

~*The Pitzer Post*~

May 1-5, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Click the link to view our upcoming theme skills!
Theme 15 (week two)
Phonics Words:  carried, dreamed, dried, melted, talked, car, six, hundred, listened
Vocab Words:  stage, transform, precipitation
Grammar Skill: Compound sentences joined with and

Math

Chapter 17: Picture Graphs
Vocabulary: picture graph, key, symbol, record, tally chart
Objectives:

• Read, analyze, and interpret picture graphs
• Complete picture graphs
• Make picture graphs
• Solve real world problems using picture graphs

MIFChapter17

Upcoming Events

Monday, May 1, 2017 

• Lunch: Chicken Patty
• Teacher Appreciation Week Begins
• STAR Benchmarking begins
• “stage” note card comes home, due Tuesday

Tuesday, May 2, 2017 

• Lunch: Beef Taco
• “transform” and “precipitation” note cards come home, due Wednesday
• Parent’s Club Meeting

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

• Lunch: Chicken Fajitas

Thursday, May 4, 2017

• Lunch: Hot Ham and Cheese
• Phonics Practice Paper (front and back) due tomorrow

Friday, May 5, 2017

• Lunch: Cheese Pizza Bread
• Last Day for Library visits
• All School Reading Camp Out from 10am-10:30am! Students may wear PJs
• Kona Ice Truck will be here 12:20-2:20pm! Please send in $3.00 for your child to purchase a small ice.

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• We have learned all upper and lowercase cursive letters! WHOO-HOO!
• Exploring, reading, and writing all forms of Poetry at the Poetry Café!
• Working extremely hard on following our 5 classroom rules
• Extending our learning by exploring HyperDocs to learn more about Earth Day and Picture Graphs
• Reviewing STEP in order to solve our own problems on the playground

~*The Pitzer Post*~

April 24-28, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Click the link to view our upcoming theme skills!
Theme 15(week one)
Phonics Words:  drier, funniest, happier, sunniest, windier, call, own, bluest, healthier
Vocab Words:  droplet, puddle, cause
Grammar Skill: Review simple sentence structure

Math

Chapter 17: Picture Graphs
Vocabulary: picture graph, key, symbol, record, tally chart
Objectives:

• Read, analyze, and interpret picture graphs
• Complete picture graphs
• Make picture graphs
• Solve real world problems using picture graphs

MIFChapter17

Cursive

Week 13 Uppercase Letters are: D, S, I, and J!
*Last week of cursive!*

Let’s finish strong and have 100% of students completed their homework!  Don’t forget to watch, practice and leave a comment.  When you leave a comment on this post, you can tell us something you noticed, something you are proud of or something you are still struggling with.  Don’t forget to leave a comment so we know that you completed your homework.

Second Step

We have now gone through all of the lessons in our Second Step program.  Next week we will be reviewing the skills we have learned so far.  Students will be given the opportunity to reflect on their individual growth and learning.  This will help them retain and apply the concepts and skills learned.  The more students review and practice, the stronger their skills become.

Some important concepts we have learned this year: Empathy, focused listening, STEP, consequences, choices, belly breathing, positive self talk, name your feeling, and being assertive.  Please feel free to ask your child about these concepts and how they can use them at school and home.

Upcoming Events

Monday, April 24, 2017

• Lunch: Sub Sandwich
• “droplet” note card comes home, due Tuesday

Tuesday, April 25, 2017 

• Lunch: Lasagna Bake
• “puddle” and “cause” note cards come home, due Wednesday
• K-1 Music Program @ 6:30pm

Wednesday, April 26, 2017

• ½ Day SIP DAY
  • Students are dismissed at 11:15am
• Secretary’s Day
• Read Grandma’s Ring out loud, book and slip signed and returned tomorrow

Thursday, April 27, 2017

• Lunch: Chicken and Waffles
• St. Jude Benefit 5-8pm
  • Talent Show 6:30pm-7:30pm

Friday, April 28, 2017

• Lunch: Bosco Sticks
• POETRY CAFÉ!
  • Don’t forget to RSVP!
  • Parents and Grandparents are welcome to join us for all or part of the day

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• One week away from finishing cursive writing! WHOO-HOO!
• Learning about alliteration and trying to incorporate it into our writing as much as possible
  • Check out our Padlet:
• Discovering the onscreen keyboard on our Chromebooks and finding EMOJIS!
• Mrs. Pitzer introducing us to #BookSnaps
• Reviewing subtraction and bar models during math workshop
• Creating our own timelines
• Celebrating Earth Day by exploring a HyperDoc

~*The Pitzer Post*~

April 17-21, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Click the link to view our upcoming theme skills!
Theme 14 (week two)
Phonics Words:  babies, candies, cherries, flies, supplies, hold, have, memories, trophies
Vocab Words:  provide, obtain, wages
Grammar Skill: Adjectives and Adverbs

Math

We’ve spent this week reviewing our skills for adding 3 digit numbers. This is an important concept that 2nd grade students are expected to master before heading to 3rd grade.  We’ve done some fun activities to help us practice this skill.  Next week we’ll head on to reviewing subtracting and bar models. This will also be another great way to reinforce addition and subtraction of 3 digit numbers

Cursive

Week 12 Uppercase Letters are: Y, Z, Q, and X!

As soon as your child learns the uppercase letter that starts their name, they can begin writing their name in cursive in class!!  When you leave a comment on this post, you can tell us something you noticed, something you are proud of or something you are still struggling with.  Don’t forget to leave a comment so we know that you completed your homework.  I loved the comments that have detail (specifics) AND followed the rules of writing!

Pitzer Poetry Café

Friday, April 28, 2017 is Poetry Café Day in second grade!  Information came home last week to fill you in on all of the poetic fun!  Grandparents and or parents are more than welcome to join us for all or part of the day as we discover so many different ways to write, read, listen to and enjoy poetry.  Please let me know if you plan on attending by filling out the  bottom part of the form.

Upcoming Events

Monday, April 17, 2017 

• No School!

Tuesday, April 18, 2016

• Lunch: Nachos
• “provide” note card comes home, due Wednesday
• Watch Cursive Week 12 Video, comment and practice  (due Wednesday)

Wednesday, April 19, 2017

• Lunch: Hot Dog
• “obtain” and “wages” note cards come home, due Wednesday
• Watch Cursive Week 12 Video and comment by today
• Board of Education Meeting 7pm
  • DGS students will be presenting!!

Thursday, April 20, 2017

• Lunch: Chicken and Noodles
• Phonics Practice Paper (front and back), due tomorrow

Friday, April 21, 2017

• Lunch: Cheese Pizza
• Progress Reports Issued
• Theme 14 Test

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• 11 weeks of cursive under our belts…2 week left!
• Comparing and contrasting vocabulary pictures for a vocabulary discussion by using TodaysMeet
• Exploring PublishYourDeisgn – Lego Builder to turn writer’s workshop into a makerspace
• Building our poem with virtual Legos
• Students cashing in on their poetic quest prizes and earning bonus points!
• Reviewing addition and basic facts in math to prove mastery
• Improving our fact fluency accuracy to 96% for both addition and subtraction
• 10 Seussville Citizens leveled on the Super Improver wall
• Collaborating with our friends during our makerspace writer’s workshop
• Using Google Forms to evaluate the Lego Builder tool
• Laughing at where Mr. Wright put eyes on the pile of mulch becusae it reminded us of a pretty hysterical emoji

Second Grade in Pictures

~*The Pitzer Post*~

April 10-14, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Click the link to view our upcoming theme skills!
Theme 14(week one)
Phonics Words:  locks, buses, cakes, passes, peaches, use, year, catches, officers
Vocab Words:  market, business, prepare
Grammar Skill: Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

Check out this song we used this week to learn about prefixes and suffixes:

We have learned 78 vocabulary words: cabin, visit, memory, tradition, relatives, generation, rely, role, member, identity, sibling, symbol, fascinate, exploration, journal, measure, calendar, interval, daily, orbit, position, solar, ray, rotate, crossing, rural, build, purpose, social, urban, reside, route, state, journey, boundary, terrain, essential, wheel, machine, reduce, labor, effort, attract, magnet, object, operate, field, effect, result, vote, wait, government, duty, election, contribute, police, volunteer, participate, influence, emergency, nourished, farming, maintain, bounty, various, produce, freight, consume, distribute, available, taste, range, interest, earn, increase, value, browse, and spend.

Your child should be able to define each of the above words.  A great way to practice is to encourage your child to use the above words when writing or speaking.

We have learned 55 phonics patterns: diagraphs (ph, sh, th, ch), short vowels, ake, ine, oke, ute, ail, ain, ay, eed, ea, eat, oat, ow, ue, ui, or, orn, art, ir, urn, air, ear, eer, ore, are, ire, oom, ew, au, aw, awn, alk, all, ood, ook, ank, ink, unk, ice, age, arge, oil, oy, ound, out, ow, contractions, kn, wr, dge, tch, adjectives –er, prefix un, and suffixes (-ful, less, -er, -ly).

Once we learn a pattern above your child is held accountable to spell words with that pattern in them correctly.  While there are a lot of them now, we had a new set each week.  During that week your child participates in a lot of practice in order to help move into the mastery stage.  Another way to practice is to encourage your child to use these patterns while writing and or make a list of as many words as they can with any given pattern.

Please feel free to check out Spelling City on our Symbaloo.  This is a great way to practice our vocabulary and phonics pattern words at home.

Math

Next week, we will be taking an opportunity to review addition skills and strategies.  By the end of second grade, students are expected to have mastered this concept.  This way, they can better understand concepts in 3^rd grade.  There will be fun activities and I can’t wait to celebrate how much they have grown!

Chapter 2: Addition
Vocabulary: add, place value chart, regroup
Objectives:

• Use base-ten blocks to add numbers without regrouping
• Use base-ten blocks to add numbers with regrouping
• Add up to three-digit numbers without regrouping
• Add up to three-digit numbers with regrouping
• Solve real-world addition problems

This is a great chapter to brush up on math facts.  Check out this great website:   http://www.mathfactspro.com/mathfactfluencygame.html#/home
Students can practice basic facts and it allows you to pick the operation, how many problems and then reports how long it takes you to answer.  There of course is a paid version but the free version is just as great!  You can also use flashcards and or the Fast Math App.  If you are having trouble with when to practice you can try a little bit each night or designate certain nights of the week for practice; whatever works the best for your family.  I know third grade teachers highly appreciate as much fact fluency as possible!

Cursive

Week 11 Uppercase Letters are: N, M, W, U and V!

As soon as your child learns the uppercase letter that starts their name, they can begin writing their name in cursive in class!!  When you leave a comment on this post, you can tell us something you noticed, something you are proud of or something you are still struggling with.  Don’t forget to leave a comment so we know that you completed your homework.  I loved the comments that have detail (specifics) AND followed the rules of writing!

Upcoming Events

Monday, April 10, 2017

• Lunch: Cheeseburger
• “market” note card comes home, due Tuesday
• Watch Cursive Week 11 Video, comment and practice  (due Wednesday)

Tuesday, April 11, 2017 

• Lunch: Chicken Alfredo Twist
• “business” and “prepare”  note card comes home, due Wednesday
• Watch Cursive Week 11Video, comment and practice  (due Wednesday)

Wednesday, April 12, 2017

• Lunch: Grilled Cheese
• Registration for current students closes
• Watch Cursive Week 11 Video and comment by today

Thursday, April 7, 2016

• Lunch: Spaghetti
• Mr. Horrie’s Birthday

Friday, April 8, 2016

• No School! Easter Break!

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• Beginning 3^rd grade Boot Camp! We all started out as privates and are trying to earn our way up the ranks by showing Mrs. Pitzer we are ready for 3^rd grade!
• 3 Seussville Citizens leveling up on the Super Improver Wall #2Psuperimprovers
• Exploring 2 new tech tools: an interactive white board and Lego Builder
  • On the interactive whiteboard we became familiar with the tool by recording what we want to be when we grow up
  • The Lego builder we explored/build and then shared what we learned
• Learning about figurative language and how much fun it is to write/read
• Discovering –ful, -less, -er, and –ly suffixes
• Wrapping up our unit on telling time
• Realizing we have learned how to write 7 genres this year: personal narratives, expository texts, letters, biographies, opinions, stories, and poetry!
• Using Padlet to write Haikus: https://padlet.com/spitzer/gzqy9ktv3p6c 
• Listening to our new read aloud: The Bag Beginning by Lemony Snicket and performed by Tim Curry who does all the characters voices!

Second Grade in Pictures!

~*The Pitzer Post*~

April 3-7, 2017

In this weekly post, you will find information about the academic content and special events happening in the upcoming week. 

Literacy (Reading & Writing)

Click the link to view our upcoming theme skills!
Theme 13 (week two)
Phonics Words:  careful, farmer, fearless, handful, slowly, set, sometimes, heard, ruffle
Vocab Words:  value, browse, spend
Grammar Skill: Adjectives

Adjectives Grammaropolis:

Math

Chapter 14: Time
Vocabulary: hour hand, minute hand, minute, hour, o’clock, after, clock face, A.M., P.M.
Objectives:

• Use the minute hand to show and tell the number for every five minutes after the hour
• Show and tell time in hours and minutes
• Use A.M. and P.M. to show morning, afternoon, or night
• Order events by time
• Determine how much time has passed

MIFChapter14

Cursive

Week 10 Uppercase Letters are: T, F, H, K!

Oh dear we have fallen behind on posting our comments on time.  We only have 4 weeks left so let’s finish strong!  As soon as your child learns the uppercase letter that starts their name, they can begin writing their name in cursive in class!!  When you leave a comment on this post, you can tell us something you noticed, something you are proud of or something you are still struggling with.  Don’t forget to leave a comment so we know that you completed your homework.  I loved the comments that have detail (specifics) AND followed the rules of writing!

Second Step

This week we applied the STEP problem solving strategy!  We learned that when you explore consequences of each solution, you could realize you either don’t agree on a solution and or you may need to try to come up with new ideas.  We also learned the importance of compromise so you can get back to your activity in a timely manner.

Upcoming Events

Monday, April 3, 2017 

•  Lunch: Chicken Patty
• “value” note card comes home, due Tuesday
• Watch Cursive Week 10 Video, comment and practice  (due Wednesday)

Tuesday, April 4, 2017 

• Lunch: Beef Taco
• “browse” and “spend”  note card comes home, due Wednesday
• Parent’s Club Meeting 7pm
• Watch Cursive Week 10 Video, comment and practice  (due Wednesday)

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

• Lunch: Fish Nuggets
• Watch Cursive Week 10 Video and comment by today

Thursday, April 6, 2017

• Lunch: Chicken Tenders
• Phonics Practice Paper comes home (due tomorrow)

Friday, April 7, 2017

• Bosco Sticks
• Spirit Day!

Celebrating Our Greatness!

• Learning and reading so many different types of poetry!  How many types of poetry can your child name and explain?
• 9 weeks of cursive under our belts…4 weeks left to go!
• Navigating our Time Investigation HyperDoc
• Learning the importance of managing our time and putting first things first
• Inferring cause and effects while reading throughout the week
• Enjoying our time with Mrs. Stoller!