Family Newsletter

 Dear Families,

Here is our week in review:

Social-Emotional Learning:

• This week in Second Step, we learned more about how we can show empathy and compassion to our classmates when conflicts arise.  The students reviewed the various problem-solving steps they have learned, such as using an assertive, but polite, voice to advocate for themselves, ignoring the problem behavior, moving to a better spot  or asking for help.  Sometimes, however, wrongs must be made right again between the individual students.  Apologizing and forgiving are two powerful ways in which young learners can show empathy towards each other.  This week, we added “acts of kindness” as a new technique for solving problems.  The students learned how to create cards and pictures of apologies to friends in class.  They did an amazing job adding beautiful and thoughtful pictures and words to their cards.  They also learned that putting a little extra time into an apology through the act of drawing, or making a card for a friend, makes you feel better too.

Reading:

• This week, the students continued to read in small groups with guided reading instruction.  It is wonderful to have Mr. Matt with us.  He meets with small groups too.

• Next week we will start our non-fiction reading unit.  We will switch gears and learn more about nonfiction text features through books, magazines and online reading platforms.

• Elementary school-age children around Vermont are currently reading the nominated books for the “Red Clover Awards”.  Every year, ten books are nominated and the children of Vermont vote for the winner.  This year, you can access these books at home too.  They are all linked as digital books on our school library page, student portal  and here on Sora, an online reading site with a huge collection of ebooks. Perhaps you want to try it at home too?  As always, any technical problems arising from this site should be addressed to our fabulous IT HelpDesk staff.  They can be contacted from the school website portal too.  Thank you.

Writing:

• We are wrapping up our unit on opinion writing pieces.  This week, the students learned about how writers can create effective conclusions to end their writing pieces by using transition words and restating their original statements.  Next week, the students will participate in the district-wide post-assessment for this writing genre.  They are amazing authors!

Math:

• This week, we continued our small group/workplace explorations of various math concepts.  The students worked in small groups to develop a greater understanding of place value, subtraction and measuring.  The students were encouraged to make sense of the equations before attempting a calculation strategy.  They were also encouraged to build the starting numbers using unifix cubes as a way to make sense.  This is particularly important for young mathematicians when using subtraction since numbers sometimes get confused and reversed.  The students also discovered that when you do math with large numbers, you can no longer rely on counting by ones, since that strategy is too laborious and inefficient, often leading to errors as well.  The students learned that objects and mathematical drawings can represent larger groups of things.  

Science:

• Harmony House had another 4 Winds class this week.  Thank you parent volunteers for making this possible.  This week, we learned about how animals survive cold climates, with particular focus on how animals in Vermont survive the winters. The students enjoyed a puppet show and then participated in an experiment and played a matching game.

News and Reminders:

• Report cards will go out next Friday, February 3rd.  They will be packed inside your child’s backpack.  Please read these with your child and celebrate their hard work at school.  They are all amazing, kind learners!

Have a great weekend,

Maria

Family Newsletter

 Dear Families,

Here is our week in review:

Social-Emotional Learning:

• This week, the students participated in another restorative circle with Ms. Nicole, Mr. Matt and me.  We continued practicing empathy and understanding other people’s perspectives and feelings.  The students learned another game in which they could share their own preferences while also understanding other classmates’ different opinions about things.  We learned so much about each other.

• The students filled our classroom buzzy jar again for being safe, kind and responsible.  This time we celebrated by making origami designs and structures.  The students are very creative!

Reading:

• This week, we learned more about Martin Luther King Jr.  The students participated in different activities and had the opportunity to share their understanding with each other.  We read the book “Martin’s Big Words” by Doreen Rappaport.  We learned about his powerful message of freedom, equality and peace through pictures and words. One of our students even created a special greeting involving what we have learned about him.  Kids are truly amazing!

• This week, Mr. Matt was the guest teacher for a couple of days so I could finish mid-year reading assessments.  As you may recall, ABS uses the Fountas and Pinnell assessment program, which assesses the students’ reading accuracy, fluency and comprehension.  It is a pleasure to read with the children and listen to their thoughtful analyses and insights.  They have all made terrific progress in reading across all domains.  Thank you for supporting daily reading routines at home and thank you for engaging in conversations about these books as well.  They love to read.  Many times, they cheer when it is time for the readers' workshop!  It is a very special time in our day.

Writing:

• This week, the students continued to add more words to their opinion pieces/book recommendations.  They completed their introductions which contained various creative writing features and techniques, such as asking the reader questions and including specific examples from the books they are writing about.  The students also added their first and second reasons to justify their book choice.  While adding reasoned arguments, the students are also encouraged to adhere to appropriate English grammar conventions (for second grade).

Math:

• This week, second grade mathematicians continued to work on expanding their addition and subtraction strategies.  In our daily Number Talks, the students shared how they can start tackling these equations/math problems by asking themselves “What do I already know about these numbers?”  Making sense before choosing a strategy to solve the problem helps young mathematicians develop a deeper understanding and trust in their own abilities to solve problems.  They are doing great.

News and Reminders:

• It is getting cold outside.  Please make sure your child comes to school with weather-appropriate clothing for outdoor recess.  Hats, boots and snow pants are needed every day!  Thank you.

• Please make sure your child has a water bottle every day as well.  Some children keep their water bottles at school for the entire week and take them home on Fridays for cleaning.  Thank you.

Have a great weekend,

Maria

Family Newsletter

 Dear Families,

Here is our week in review:

Social-Emotional Learning:

• This week, the students continued to learn about empathy and recognizing other peoples’ emotions.  We played a game called “the choral clapping game” to explore feelings of frustration and empathy.  Your child has an optional homelink from Second Step inside their Home Folder this week so you can play this at home too.  

• The students filled our classroom jar again this week for being safe, kind and responsible.  This time they voted for extra arts and crafts.  They had so much fun creating different things out of pipe cleaners, yarn and popsicle sticks.  I hope they shared their creations with you at home.

Reading:

• This week, the students participated in our district-wide reading assessments using iReady, a computer-based program.  They did an outstanding job showing perseverance and stamina, while working through this assessment independently.

• We started a new read aloud this week.  This time, we are reading the first book in the series called “Ranger in Time” by the Vermont author Kate Messner.  This series is about a time-traveling golden retriever who encounters adventures and saves the day (in the end!).

Writing:

• This week, we continued writing our opinion pieces.  The students are writing book recommendations based upon books they really like.  They will justify their opinions by writing 2-3 reasons why somebody else should read the book as well.  This writing unit will also have a computer component.  Ms. Scott is helping us create google slides to reflect this writing so we can share our final product with you at home and with other classrooms and students.  Stay tuned!

• The students also continued working on hand-writing, adhering to finger-spacing, proper grammar and punctuation.  They are doing great!

Math:

• This week, second grade mathematicians participated in the district-wide iReady math assessment.

• The students also continued to learn more about inches and feet, measuring various objects in our classroom while showing no gaps or overlaps.  

• Our number talks this week addressed two-digit subtraction equations.  The students are encouraged to start by making sense and thinking of what they already know about the numbers before procedurally choosing a strategy to solve.  We systematically practiced subtracting 10, 11 and 9 first, anchoring to 10.  The students are also encouraged to think about addition, decomposing the numbers to anchor to friendlier decuples.

News and Reminders:

• It is getting cold outside.  Please make sure your child comes to school with weather-appropriate clothing for outdoor recess.  Hats, boots and snow pants are needed every day!  Thank you.

• Please make sure your child has a water bottle every day as well.  Some children keep their water bottles at school for the entire week and take them home on Fridays for cleaning.  Thank you.

• There is no school on Monday, 1/16/23 due to MLK Jr. Day.

Have a great weekend,

Maria

Family Newsletter

 Dear Families,

Here is our week in review:

Welcome back to school and Happy New Year!  I hope you all had a wonderful and restful holiday break.  I filled the week off with family fun as well as skiing and skating (before the thaw).  I hope you had a great week too!

We have a new intern in our classroom this semester.  His name is Mr. Matt and he is currently a student at St. Michael’s College.  He joined our classroom weekly last semester as well, although now he’s with us full-time.  We are so lucky to have him with us!  Thank you, Mr. Matt!

Social-Emotional Learning:

• Coming back to school after an extended vacation or break can sometimes be challenging for young learners, so this week, we revisited familiar routines and expectations.  We practiced and discussed what it means to be a member of a classroom and a participant in our various classes and learning activities.  We also practiced what whole body listening looks like and sounds like, with calm bodies, listening ears, eyes watching and quiet voices.

• The students filled our classroom buzzy jar for being safe, kind and responsible this week too!  This time, they celebrated with extra explore/choice time.

Reading:

• This week, the students practiced being actively engaged readers, who show stamina and focus for longer periods of time every day. The students read books from their book bins, our classroom/school library and from Lexia.

• We started reading our new chapter book “Fergus and Zeke” by Kate Messner.  This series is about a classroom mouse who befriends another mouse and go on adventures together.

Writing:

• This week, our second grade authors participated in a district-wide writing assessment pertaining to opinion writing.  The students were encouraged to write about a topic they know a lot about and feel strongly about, while elaborating and adding 2-3 reasons to justify their position.  For the next few weeks, the students will learn to add their own creative writer’s voice to their writing pieces, while creating logical and relevant supporting paragraphs with a conclusion.  Stay tuned for more in the next few weeks!

Math:

• Second grade mathematicians continued to practice number sense and mental math strategies in our daily “Number Talk” sessions in math class.  This week, they shared different ways to solve complicated multi-digit equations while learning to understand the strategies of others.  They are amazing mathematicians and we are so proud of them all.

• In our daily calendar, the students are also practicing basic number sense, looking at the weeks and the days to figure out problems involving questions like, “In how many more days…? How many days/weeks ago….? And “How many more days until….?”  We strongly encourage families to integrate this type of conversation at home.  Perhaps you already do so using the school calendar that was sent home at the beginning of the school year for your child to use?

• Second grade mathematicians also started a new unit on measurement.  In second grade our common core standards address several new concepts, not covered in first grade.  For example, second grade mathematicians will learn how to use standard measuring tools, such as rulers, yard sticks and measuring tapes.  Second graders will also learn to understand inches, feet and yards.  In the next few weeks, the students will learn to use these tools while measuring objects accurately with no overlaps and gaps between the measuring tools used.

WIN Times:

• Next week our team will be starting our WIN block, which is part of a school wide initiative to meet the needs of more students. WIN stands for What I Need. Our team of teachers, along with some other teachers in the building, have taken the time to look at the needs of our Harmony students, and planned various groups around those needs. The groups will meet 3-4 days a week for about 40 minutes. We will be starting next week and go until February break.

Have a great weekend,

Maria