Welcome to 2nd Grade

Curriculum Night

Year 2014-2015

Mrs. Baxter Room 12Ms. DiLorenzo Room 17Mrs. King Room 18Mrs. McBurney Room 13Mrs. Potts Room 16

Second Grade Teachers

ReadingCombination Whole Group/Small Group using our newly

adopted Journeys Series

Your child will:• Master sound/symbol relationships• Blend sounds to form words• Read with understanding (comprehension)• Develop oral reading fluency• Develop literal, logical, and critical thinking skills• Develop listening skills through exposure to high-quality

literature• Your child will also be participating in Daily 5 activities

 

Reading - Common Core Academic Content Standards

•Approved - AZ. State Board of Education June 2010

•Full implementation of the Common Core Standards

•Performance objectives are very specific

•Represents the skills that are a part of everyday expectations

The main focus is to deepen understanding with more meaningful, rigorous lessons for our

students so they can read and comprehend complex text. Students will analyze and use

critical thinking skills to communicate opinions and how to support them in arguments.

Math

The following are the math concepts that we will be working

on throughout the year: • Place Value and Counting• 2 and 3 Digit Addition with/without Regrouping • 2 and 3 Digit Subtraction with/without Regrouping• Money • Telling time to 5 minutes• Fractions• Geometry (Shapes, Symmetry)• Word Problems will be used with each concept.

Math DOK

(Depth of Knowledge)

Students Will:• Make sense of problems and persevere in solving the

problem• Reason abstractly and quantitatively• Model with mathematics• Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning• Come up with multiple solutions to a problem (i.e.

5+5=10, 6+4=10, 11-1=10, 10 ones, 1 ten, 10 pennies, 1 nickel and 5 pennies.)

• Use different mathematical strategies to solve a problem.

Writing

Your child will be given numerous opportunities to write daily.

• Writing pieces which give your child continuing exposure to the writing process (pre-writing, rough draft, editing/revision, publishing) using the Write From the Beginning Series.

• Literacy response activities• Book Report projects• Different types of genre writing include:

» Friendly Letters/ Family Journals» Narratives» Functional Text (classroom rules, letters, experiments,

recipes, notes/messages, labels, directions, posters, graphs/tables)

» Poetry, Rhymes and Chants» Literature Responses» Expository Text

Writing - Journeys• Unit 1 – Narrative, Simple Sentences, Types of Sentences,

Friendly Letters and Sentences of True Story• Unit 2 – Informational Writing, Writing Informational

Paragraphs, Writing Instruction• Unit 3 - Opinion Writing, Persuasive Essay• Unit 4 – Narrative, Story Paragraphs, Descriptive, Fictional

Stories • Unit 5 – Informative Writing, Problem Solving Paragraphs,

Compare/Contrast, Informational Paragraph, and Research Reports

• Unit 6 – Opinion Writing, Response Poems, Opinion Paragraphs and Response Essays

Spelling and HandwritingYour child will receive a group of spelling words weekly. The assessment will include assigned words

using the districts newly adopted Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Journeys Series, 2nd grade sight words, and dictation. A percentage grade will be given for spelling accuracy. Formal tests will be given on

the last day of the week. Your child’s handwriting effort will also be evaluated on this test.

Handwriting EvaluationHandwriting effort grades are determined by performance on weekly spelling tests and random selections of daily work.

MSExcellent-Correct and consistent formation and spacing of letters and words. Writing is neat and legible.

PSatisfactory-Some flaws in handwriting appear. Refer to “MS” for other criteria.

ACNeeds Improvement-Substantial flaws and/or lacks effort to improve. Illegible writing.

Science

• Life Cycles• Digestive, Respiratory, and Circulatory

Systems• Solids, Liquids, and Gases• Types of Clouds• Measuring Weather• Inventors and their Inventions

Social Studies

• Research Skills, Timelines• American Colonies and the New Nation• Westward Expansion• The Foundations of Government• Branches of Government• Economics-producers and consumers• Map Skills• Citizenship and Character Counts

EVALUATING THEPRIMARY STUDENT

• DIBELS – reading fluency• DAILY 5/CAFE• DRA (Developmental Reading Assessment) –

reading fluency and comprehension• SAT 10• 2nd Grade Sight Words (Reading and spelling.)• Qualitative Spelling Inventory• Journeys Weekly/Bi-Weekly Assessments• Write from the Beginning• Common Core assessments• Teacher Observation

Grading

• Percentage• Rubric • Effort • Progress Reports• Report Card

Percentage Grades

Your child will be receiving a percentage grade this year on their report card in the following areas:

oMathoReadingoWritingoLanguage ArtsoScience oSocial StudiesoListening & Speaking

Parent Communication

We want you to be aware of how your child is doing academically this year.

oCheck your child’s weekly homework after they complete it.oRead the curriculum section in our weekly newsletter.oReview graded work that is sent home.oCheck your child’s grades online. You will be able to view their current percentage in each subject as well as how they performed on specific assignments.oReview their mid-quarter progress report.

Homework

• The focus in second grade is READING , 20 minutes per night.  In addition, we will send home the following:

• Journeys Spelling/High Frequency Words (word sorts and activities)

• Math practice/enrichment• Special Projects

The Second Grade team will be sending homework home on Fridays. It is due the following Friday.

*Please note: Homework not turned in by the student on Friday will result in the loss of Friday free time.

Fun Friday

• Fun Friday - free time activities• Completed homework• Completed class work• Excellent behavior

Consequences• Incomplete assignments will be

completed during this time.

Santan Storm

= = WarningWarning

= Reflection = Reflection

= Loss of Recess= Loss of Recess = Loss of Fun = Loss of Fun FridayFriday

= Detention = Detention

Santan School-Wide Bully Program - Olweus

What is Bullying?•A person is bullied when he or she is exposed, repeatedly and over time, to negative actions on the part of one or more other persons, and he or she has difficulty defending himself or herself.

Expressed in more everyday language one might say: Bullying is when someone repeatedly and on purpose says or does mean or hurtful things to another person

who has a hard time defending himself or herself.

Santan School-Wide Bully Program – Olweus

What Are the Goals of the Program?The goals of the program are to:• reduce any existing bullying problems among students• prevent the development of new bullying problems• achieve better peer relations at school (Weekly Classroom

Lessons)

Our School’s Anti-Bullying Rules1. We will not bully others2. We will try to help students who are bullied.3. We will try to include students who are left out.4. If we know that somebody is being bullied, we will tell an

adult at school and an adult at home.5. We will practice each pillar of character daily; respect,

responsibility, trustworthiness, caring, fairness and citizenship.

Volunteers

We love to have family members- parents, grandparents, high school students – join us as volunteers in our second grade classroom! Please see your teacher if you are interested in

volunteering.

While in the classroom, you will sometimes be working with students, and/or viewing student work and behavior. In order to maintain a

professional atmosphere where students are safe to work, learn, and play at their own levels, it is essential that we keep all observations confidential. Out of respect for the students, we ask that you do not

share private information about students that you may witness in the classroom with other people. Children perform at varying learning

levels and have different personalities. By asking you to follow these guidelines, we can ensure that information about your child will be kept

private as well.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation on this policy. We look forward to working with you this year!

Bits and PiecesSnacks

Students are permitted to bring their own healthy snack from home to eat during class time.  We will have a "working snack,"  where the class will continue to work on assignments.  Candy is not considered a snack, and if brought, will be asked to put away until dismissal.  

LunchIf your child will be purchasing lunch at school, please have them give us their money or check in the morning so we can add it to their lunch account or bring it to the MPR before school starts. You can also access your student’s lunch account at www.mylunchmoney.com. You are welcome to join your child for lunch on Fridays.

 DismissalPlease be sure to send an email or a note with your child anytime he/she will be going home a different way than usual (bus rather than walk, home with a friend, etc.) In order to minimize distractions in the classroom, parents are expected to wait outside in the designated parent pick-up area until the bell rings.

Thank You for Coming!

• Thank you so much for coming. We can’t wait to work with your child this school year!

• It’s a privilege to be a part of your child’s learning development and it is very rewarding to see the progress they make along the way!

• If you ever have any questions, concerns, or comments, please feel free to call, set up a meeting, or email your child's teacher.

- The 2nd Grade Team