Thursday, August 29, 2013

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

Progress reports will come home on Friday (tomorrow). We wrapped up MClass testing in Reading this week so that information will come home too. Over the long weekend, please read through your child's data and the suggested activities.

Don't Forget...
-No school on Monday
-Sign this week's behavior card to return Tuesday
-Sign MClass data form to return Tuesday
-Sign progress report to return Tuesday

On one of our closets, I will display high quality work, or Wonderful Work. This week we learned about the desert, and here is some of the work (from a Writing center) that caught my eye! Great job Delaney, Aiden, and Ashton!





Monday, August 26, 2013

Aug.26-30

This Week In...
Math- Addition Strategies
Reading- Main Idea & Details; Text Structure
Language Arts- Declarative & Interrogative Sentences; Inflected Endings
Science- Desert Life

Homework:
M- DEAR Log, Math Practice 2.5
T- DEAR Log, Math Practice 2.6
W-DEAR Log, Math Practice 2.7
Th- DEAR Log, Topic 2 Study Guide
F- Get behavior card signed by parents over weekend and return to school on Monday. Also have midterm signed and returned!

Reminders:
-PTO Walk-a-Thon pledges/donations are due Thursday!
-There is no school NEXT Monday. Happy Labor Day!!
-Please sign your child's behavior card OVER the WEEKEND. Not during the school week. This lets me know your child shared how his/her whole week was.
-Midterms come home Friday!

Sunday, August 25, 2013

"Out of this World" Fun!

Madelyn works on facts about Jupiter.


Connor, Ben, Josalynn, and Kyle work on Uranus. 


Ashton, Giovanny, Sebastian, and Delaney work on Saturn. 


 Syndee and Cameron work on facts about the Sun. 


Kayden, Nadia, Logan, and Aiden work on Neptune. 


The Sun and Inner Solar System


The Outer Solar System


Students were split into groups. Together they searched for facts and made the planets.


Our Class Solar System 



Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Working on Centers!

Most days we do centers during Reading time. While Miss D works with small groups, students work with one another at four different centers, which they rotate through. The centers vary each day...Some centers we have done so far this year are Vocabulary, Phonics, Fluency, Spelling, and Writing. And of course we usually have DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) time! During DEAR time, students can choose what they read. They can also take AR tests during this center.
Here's a peek at today:


Ashton, Aiden, Kayden, and Alyvia work at the Writing Center. 

Alexis, Logan, Giovanny, and Nadia are building and 
changing words at the Phonics Center. 


Syndee, Brooklyn, Connor, and Ben work on Roll, 
Read, Write at our Fluency Center. 

Sebastian enjoys some DEAR Time. 


Yesterday we learned about the outer solar system and 
added the last four planets. Now students will make their
 own solar system to display in the hallway!

The inflatable solar system hanging in the back of our room!
Below the planets are lists of facts we found about them.  
Oops! Jupiter is deflating a little! :)

Monday, August 19, 2013

Aug.19-23

This Week In...
Math: Addition Strategies
Reading: Character & Setting; Story Structure
Language Arts: Synonyms; Predicates
Science: Planets

Homework...
Monday: DEAR Log/Speed Drill; Math Practice 2.1
Tuesday: DEAR Log/Speed Drill; Math Practice 2.2
Wednesday: DEAR Log/Speed Drill; Math Practice 2.3
Thursday: DEAR Log/Speed Drill; Math Practice 2.4

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Exploring Our World & Space

During the first week of school, we learned about the location of our planet, continent, country, state, and town. Here is the visual we used to better understand the concept. 



Students also got to practice by making Me on the Maps. Hanging above our "maps" is the All About Me banner we made on the first day of school.





The solar system was introduced this last week as we read 
Exploring Space with an Astronaut. Students learned about the Sun and 
made these cute suns out of paper plates to show what they know.  





As a class, we learned about the inner solar system last week. We searched for facts about Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars (the rock planets). This week we will add the rest of our planets as we learn about the outer solar system (the gas giants). Students will then work in small groups to make their own solar system to put in the hallway! More pictures to come next week!




Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Aug. 12-16

I apologize I did not have an opportunity to post this week's information yesterday!

This Week In...
Reading: Main Idea & Details; Text Structure
Math: Addition/Subtraction Sentences
Language Arts: Subjects & Predicates
Science: Our Planets

Homework of the Week:
Monday: DEAR Log & Math Practice 1.4
Tuesday: DEAR Log & Math Practice 1.5
Wednesday: DEAR Log & Math Practice 1.6
Thursday: DEAR Log & Topic 1 Study Guide
Friday: Behavior card signed by a parent to return on Monday

Reminders:
-Students will have bus tags on their backpacks starting this week. Please make sure you move the bus tag if your child switches backpacks. Also it is very IMPORTANT you notify me and the office if there will be transportation changes. 
-Topic 1 Math test will be on Friday!
-Please do not sign your child's behavior card until the weekend. This lets me know that he/she shared how the week was with you.

Check back later this week to see some things we've been 
working on last week and this week!

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Meet the Teacher TONIGHT!!!

Change:
-Our Spelling test has been moved to Friday this week ONLY! Next week we will take it on Thursday as usual.

Reminders:
-All About Me bag is due tomorrow!
-Don't forget to come to Meet the Teacher Night from 6:30-7:30. Your child will get to show you around the room and receive a treat bag when finished! I greatly look forward to meeting you and learning more about your child.

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Aug. 5-9

This week in...
Reading: Character & Setting; Monitor & Clarify
Math: Addition & Subtraction Number Sentences
Language Arts: Complete Sentences
Social Studies: Communities; Location

Homework for the Week...
Tuesday: Reading Log & Math Practice 1.1
Wednesday: Reading Log & Math Practice 1.2
Thursday: Reading Log & Math Practice 1.3
*All About Me bag is due on Friday!

Reminder- Meet the Teacher Night is Thursday from 6:30-7:30pm! Can't wait to meet you!

Monday, August 5, 2013

Happy 1st Day!

Welcome to 2nd Grade! 
Please complete the packet that came home tonight and return to school tomorrow!
About Me:
I graduated from Greenfield-Central High School in 2007 and then moved to Franklin to attend college. I graduated from Franklin College in May 2011 with my Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. After graduation, I taught 4th grade in Brownsburg for a short time while the classroom teacher was on maternity leave. I then worked with English Language Learners in Perry Township until I was given the wonderful opportunity to teach 2nd grade at Hendricks Elementary in February 2012.
I am looking forward to getting to know your child! I am confident we are going to have a wonderful year as we have fun learning and exploring together! I believe that learning should be fun and hands-on. I have high expectations for my students, and I aim to stretch their minds and imaginations. I believe that every student has the potential to learn and be great. I am proud to be a Hendricks Hurricane!

Behavior Plan:
            Every student has a clothespin. The clothespins start each day on “Ready to Learn” on our behavior chart. When a student misbehaves, he will move his clip down. The first move is a warning. The second move will result in the loss of Friday Celebration, and a third move down means a call/note home or a trip to the office if necessary. When clips are moved down, students will get a mark on their behavior card. Students can also move their clips up for making good choices and showing “Role Model” behavior. Students earn rewards in the classroom for moving their clips up.
Students will have a weekly behavior card. Each day they earn smiles or marks on their cards. There are two parts: 1) Behavior and 2) Responsibility. Behavior marks will be given for poor choices in actions (not following directions, excessive talking, disrespect towards an adult, etc.). Responsibility marks will be given for missing homework, no name on paper, not being prepared for class, etc. Weekly behavior cards must be signed every weekend and returned on Monday morning. I use weekly behavior cards for the students’ Conduct and Study Habits grades.
Each week there will be a Friday celebration. If a student has 1 or 0 marks on Responsibility and 0 marks on Behavior, he or she will be allowed to participate in the celebration.

 Homework:
Students will have homework assigned each night of the week except Friday. They will be required to read for 20 minutes every night. This will need to be recorded by the student and signed by a parent on the weekly reading log. Students will also have a math page to do each night. The math page will review and provide practice for the lesson taught that day. In addition to these two assignments, students should practice their weekly Spelling words a little each night. However, there is not a Spelling assignment to hand in to the teacher. The only assignment students will have on weekends is to ask a parent or guardian to sign their weekly behavior card. Students turn homework in when they arrive at school in the morning. Students with incomplete or missing homework will receive a mark on their behavior card (Responsibility). The incomplete/missing assignment will be made up as homework that night or during recess time.

Birthdays:
       You are more than welcome to bring in treats to celebrate your child’s birthday. However, I ask that you contact me prior so we can set up a time. Any treats must be store-bought and PEANUT FREE! We ask that birthday party invitations be mailed or given outside of class unless your child is inviting our entire class. We try to avoid hurt feelings. J

Communication:
       I believe that effective communication between parents, students, and the teacher is key to student success. Please feel free to contact me by email or phone with any questions, concerns, etc.
317-398-7432/ext. 6601
hedonahue@shelbycs.k12.in.us

I will send home a weekly newsletter every Monday with class news and homework. I will also email the newsletter each week to the email you provide on the Student Information sheet. Also, visit our class blog to see class happenings, photos, and reminders/homework assignments.


You can sign up for Remind101. This is an online program I will use when needed to inform parents of any changes to homework, delays or closings, or important classroom reminders. I send the message from a computer, and you get it as a text message! You can sign up in just a few easy steps! Your number will remain private. It is not visible to others.


Reading:
We will cover 6 units this year, each with a different theme. Each unit has 5 stories. At the beginning of a new unit, you will get an overview that has information about the stories and what we’ll be working on. In every story, there will be a focus skill for Vocabulary, Phonics, and Comprehension/Reading Strategies. You will be able to find this information on our weekly newsletter and classroom blog. Students will take a test every Friday to measure how well they have mastered the weekly focus skills.

Spelling
We will have 20 Spelling words each week. I will send the word list home on Friday the week before. Students will take the Spelling test on Thursday. Please be sure to study these a little each night during Homework Time.

Math:
We will focus on Math skills in topics throughout the year. Each time we begin a new topic, you will receive a Home Connection letter. This letter will explain the skills and Math vocabulary we are working on, as well as provide games and books related to the skills. At the end of each topic, we will take a test. While we will work on Rocket Math at school, it is incredibly important that students are working towards mastery of addition/subtraction facts at home too.


MEET THE TEACHER NIGHT is on Thursday, August 8th from 6:30-7:30. I would LOVE to meet you and learn more about your child!