Reading, Math and Dancing Elves!

As a reading focus for the past few months, your child has be working on “visualization”.  This is an excellent strategy for readers to use when recalling details in a text.  Making a picture or mental image assists readers in understanding what they read by creating images in their mind, based on the details in the text and their own schema (prior knowledge). We also have been making connections to what we are reading.  When reading, a student might think to themselves how a story reminds them of a time something similar happened in their own life.  The text might remind them of another story they read.  A book may also remind them of something that happened in the world (text to world connections).  These connections help readers to understand parts of the story, how a character feels or make them think about how they would respond if they were in the text.  Reading really is THINKING!
On Fridays, we have math stations before heading off to gym.  We are becoming very good at choosing activities that interest us and staying on task for longer periods of time.  

Prodigy is a favourite!

Using the smartboard

More Prodigy math fun!

We had more elves dancing at Holy Redeemer on Friday.  They have some smooth moves!

Friendship Celebration and Making Connections

Weekend Homework Update! Please record the weather and temperature for Saturday and Sunday.  Record in agenda.  Thanks!
Today all the grade two students at our school got together to sing along to 'Count on Me' by Bruno Mars.  Later they had to interview a student they did not know.  We will be turning their interviews into a new class book.


Later, we wrote a shared recount of the celebration in the gym. Next week, when we begin Literacy Stations, we will be asked to write a recount about our weekend.

Math Monkey liked the strategies we used to solve collaborative group question from a few days ago.

Great strategies! Love how the Ss have communicated their thinking! https://t.co/hwZvfbw3Wq

— Math Monkey (@Math_Monkey1) October 2, 2015

We continue to add to our Making Connections anchor chart on Padlet.  Today we read "Lily Jean You're So Mean". So many great connections are being made during our daily Read Alouds!

Created with Padlet

Making Connections, Adjectives, Michigan and Turkey Tag

Today we practiced our doubles in math (1-5 and 6-10).  We also were given a math problem to solve with a partner.  There were lots of strategies to solve the question and we will share them tomorrow.

Mrs. Mastin's class in Michigan was able to prove their answer using base ten.  They tweeted their answer to us.  Take a peek!

@mrsaddison2 @Math_Monkey1 42 has more tens than 24 so it is bigger. pic.twitter.com/M3obAvdUeG

— Mastin's 2nd graders (@Mastin2Gr) September 30, 2015

In Language, we continue to work on connections and adjectives.  We read the story "Wemberly Worried" and students made lots of text to self connections. 

Our Making Connections padlet keeps growing...

Created with Padlet

We listened to the story 'The Very Cranky Bear' and created an adjective anchor chart about adjectives.

We have been looking at adjectives and how they make our writing more descriptive.  Students had the opportunity to explore the Popplet app with a friend.  They had to think of a noun and brainstorm as many adjectives as they could to describe the noun. Many chose to describe their friend (we had modelled an example with Mrs. Lee) and below you will find some good examples.  Enjoy!

In gym, we played turkey tag...ask your child how to play it!

All About Me and Making Connections

This morning, we finished working on our All About Me slides with our Grade 6 tech buddies.  We will show each student's slideshow when it is their turn to be the 'Star of the Week'.  We will also put it up on the blog for mom and dad to see too!

Group 3 was able to finish their 'Good Friends' imovie trailer.  They are excited for everyone to see what they made so here it is:

We have been looking at the Making Connections reading strategy.  This afternoon, we read A Weekend with Wendell and we talked about what the story reminded us of in our own lives. It seems like a lot of brothers and sisters are bothering each other at home:) Take a look at some of our connections!