To my dear students and their families… What great children you have! It has been a treat getting to know your wonderful children and you. I hope to see you around Oak Park in the coming months and years! Keep in touch! Love, Ms. Lambshead
(jlambshead@sbcglobal.net)
Coming home this week:
• math book… to explore/work on when it’s a rainy day
• Logic booklet… have fun finishing the pages we didn’t get to
• “My 2nd Grade Big Book” – your child’s portfolio of special writing
• writing journal & “Let’s Chat” book – more pages to fill this summer with facts & fantasy
• assorted school supplies that have made it through the year
Tomorrow: 2nd grade picnic:
• Please let me know if you can walk with us to & from Fox Park, leaving school about 9, returning about 1:30
• Remember to bring a totally disposable sack lunch; dress for the weather & wear good walking shoes.
• Optional: wear a bathing suit under your clothes, bring playground toys to share, families are welcome to join us
Thursday: Dismissal at 9 AM
• Flip-Flop Day
• if you’d like, bring some finger food for a class breakfast
• report cards come home
• PBIS pool party
Learning outside the classroom…
• Super Summer Math & the Library Summer Reading Program
• Chicago Museums!! A great way to escape the heat & humidity! Some museums have a free day each week. The Chicago Children’s Museum, at Navy Pier (our dino field trip) is free for students on the first Monday of each month, and free for all every Thursday from 5-8 PM.
• When traveling, take in the unique offerings of different places (eg, Dinosaur Park in NW Colorado where you can see fossils in the ground!)
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Week of May 24, 2010
Olympic Day was well-run & well-appreciated by students & staff alike – Thanks to Mrs. Patterson and the wonderful parent volunteers! Those students who didn’t get their fill of rock climbing can go climb for free, in River Forest, S. of Lake St at Forest.
Our year together is quickly coming to a close. Tomorrow the students will hear about 2 of the best ways to not lose the reading & math skills gained this year: the Public Library Summer reading program, and Longfellow’s own Super Summer Math. Both are housed at Maze Branch library, so you can make 1 stop there weekly, to get fun incentives for reading and doing math all summer long. I highly recommend participating in these programs!!!
Reading & Social Studies We continue learning about immigration, culture & national traditions. Our stories this week are: “A Piece of Home” about a child having to chose 1 small treasure to bring to America from his home in Russia; and “Jalapeno Bagels” about a boy who the blend of cultures of his parents in choosing what to bring to school on International Day. Our spelling words are homographs, those interesting pairs that have the same spelling but different pronunciations & different meanings. These should be easier to spell than last week’s homophones!
We will do a number of activities in math this week: increasing our skill in measuring with a ruler, finding area & perimeter, estimating measurements, as well as learning about the area of mathematics called probability: using what we know to make predictions. Quiz Fri.
Homework
Daily: Do a cursive page, read for 20 minutes, practice spelling, vocabulary & math skills
Due tomorrow: commitment form for our class talent show (performing is optional)
Due Wednesday: Spelling workbook, pages 138-141
For Thursday: final timed test on 100 addition and 100 subtraction basic facts
Friday: Mrs. Kulick Day~~wear green to honor her 34 years of service to Longfellow’s students in the lunchroom! Also… it’s Tie-Dye Day! Be ready for tests & quizes: spelling, social studies, math (measurement to the nearest ½ in. or cm., area, perimeter, probability; with up-date on median, partial sums addition, & trade-first subtraction)
Optional: share about your family’s culture and/or immigration stories with the class
Coming…
Next Monday: Happy Memorial Day—No school!
Next Tuesday, 6/1: our class Talent Show; parents are welcome to join us at 10 in the auditorium
Next Wednesday, 6/2: Walking field trip to 2nd Grade Picnic at Fox Park (see back)—families are welcome to hang out with us, enjoy the park, & help supervise the children.
Next Thursday, 6/3: Last hour of 2nd grade! We’ll have a light breakfast together – I’ll provide juice & paper goods. Students are welcome to bring finger food (fruit, muffins or quick breads) to share. PBIS Pool Party from 9:45-11:45 for all whose permission slips are in now.
Our year together is quickly coming to a close. Tomorrow the students will hear about 2 of the best ways to not lose the reading & math skills gained this year: the Public Library Summer reading program, and Longfellow’s own Super Summer Math. Both are housed at Maze Branch library, so you can make 1 stop there weekly, to get fun incentives for reading and doing math all summer long. I highly recommend participating in these programs!!!
Reading & Social Studies We continue learning about immigration, culture & national traditions. Our stories this week are: “A Piece of Home” about a child having to chose 1 small treasure to bring to America from his home in Russia; and “Jalapeno Bagels” about a boy who the blend of cultures of his parents in choosing what to bring to school on International Day. Our spelling words are homographs, those interesting pairs that have the same spelling but different pronunciations & different meanings. These should be easier to spell than last week’s homophones!
We will do a number of activities in math this week: increasing our skill in measuring with a ruler, finding area & perimeter, estimating measurements, as well as learning about the area of mathematics called probability: using what we know to make predictions. Quiz Fri.
Homework
Daily: Do a cursive page, read for 20 minutes, practice spelling, vocabulary & math skills
Due tomorrow: commitment form for our class talent show (performing is optional)
Due Wednesday: Spelling workbook, pages 138-141
For Thursday: final timed test on 100 addition and 100 subtraction basic facts
Friday: Mrs. Kulick Day~~wear green to honor her 34 years of service to Longfellow’s students in the lunchroom! Also… it’s Tie-Dye Day! Be ready for tests & quizes: spelling, social studies, math (measurement to the nearest ½ in. or cm., area, perimeter, probability; with up-date on median, partial sums addition, & trade-first subtraction)
Optional: share about your family’s culture and/or immigration stories with the class
Coming…
Next Monday: Happy Memorial Day—No school!
Next Tuesday, 6/1: our class Talent Show; parents are welcome to join us at 10 in the auditorium
Next Wednesday, 6/2: Walking field trip to 2nd Grade Picnic at Fox Park (see back)—families are welcome to hang out with us, enjoy the park, & help supervise the children.
Next Thursday, 6/3: Last hour of 2nd grade! We’ll have a light breakfast together – I’ll provide juice & paper goods. Students are welcome to bring finger food (fruit, muffins or quick breads) to share. PBIS Pool Party from 9:45-11:45 for all whose permission slips are in now.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Week of May 17, 2010
We’re celebrating our hard work… view our dinosaur writing & artwork online; and come tomorrow at 6 to see & hear about the Village we have constructed & designed; you’ll also get to meet Ms. Greve, our ArtStart artist from the F.L. Wright Education Foundation!
Three ways to access our dinosaur writing:
* Go to the Student section of the Longfellow website, click on Student Projects, then click the Lambshead listing in that index.
* Go to my webpage (via Longfellow→staff→Lambshead) & see link on right
* Go to http://www.op97.org/longfellow/onlineproj/0910/Dinosaurs.html
Congratulations are also in order for our 4 Spelling Bee winners,
and for Kai, the over-all 2nd grade winner!
In both Social Studies & Reading we are learning about immigration, valuing different cultures, and holidays of our country. Learn these vocabulary words for a test on Friday: ferry, monument, independence, voyage, harbor, vendor, passenger, tossed, harmonica inspectors. This week we will read “The Story of the Statue of Liberty”, and “Butterfly Seeds”, a tender story of bringing seeds from “the old country” to feel at home in the new country. Our spelling words are homophones, words that have the same sound but different spellings & meanings (two, sea, rode, road, meet, meat, to, see, piece, fourth).
In Math we’re working to really understand fractions & their equivalencies. See below for computer games we’ll play in school & you can play after school to get ready for Fri’s test.
Homework:
Daily: read for 20 minutes, practice spelling, math facts & vocabulary
For Tomorrow, 6 – 7 PM--Families come to our Open House, to see & celebrate our Young Architects, Builders & Urban Planners !
Due Wednesday: all library books! Spelling workbook, pages 134-137
Due by Thursday: final book report (bring book & creative project, tell a summary)
Due Thursday: order form & payment for End-of-the-Year School Picnic (form attached)
Friday: Sports Day & Olympic Day! In the morning are tests on vocabulary, and fractions & median; dress for an active afternoon having Olympic fun!
Coming: Tue, 6/1: Lambshead class Talent Show (see attached form on blue paper)
Wed, 6/2: All 2nd Grade Field Day & Picnic at Fox Park
Thurs, 6/3: Last day/hour of school. Dismissal at 9; PBIS Celebration at Rehm Pool
Kudos to all who have turned in your Super Summer Math registration!!
Instead of a paper study guide for our fraction test, have fun practicing fractions and equivalencies with these computer fraction games!
• Fraction Flags (http://www.oswego.org/ocsd-web/games/fractionflags/fractionflags.html) - Design a flag using halves and quarters
• What Is a Fraction? (http://www.jamit.com.au/htmlFolder/app1001.html)- Game in which you have to identify the fraction pictured and color in a given fraction.
• Pizza Party (http://www.primarygames.com/fractions) - Tell what fraction of the pizza is left
Three ways to access our dinosaur writing:
* Go to the Student section of the Longfellow website, click on Student Projects, then click the Lambshead listing in that index.
* Go to my webpage (via Longfellow→staff→Lambshead) & see link on right
* Go to http://www.op97.org/longfellow/onlineproj/0910/Dinosaurs.html
Congratulations are also in order for our 4 Spelling Bee winners,
and for Kai, the over-all 2nd grade winner!
In both Social Studies & Reading we are learning about immigration, valuing different cultures, and holidays of our country. Learn these vocabulary words for a test on Friday: ferry, monument, independence, voyage, harbor, vendor, passenger, tossed, harmonica inspectors. This week we will read “The Story of the Statue of Liberty”, and “Butterfly Seeds”, a tender story of bringing seeds from “the old country” to feel at home in the new country. Our spelling words are homophones, words that have the same sound but different spellings & meanings (two, sea, rode, road, meet, meat, to, see, piece, fourth).
In Math we’re working to really understand fractions & their equivalencies. See below for computer games we’ll play in school & you can play after school to get ready for Fri’s test.
Homework:
Daily: read for 20 minutes, practice spelling, math facts & vocabulary
For Tomorrow, 6 – 7 PM--Families come to our Open House, to see & celebrate our Young Architects, Builders & Urban Planners !
Due Wednesday: all library books! Spelling workbook, pages 134-137
Due by Thursday: final book report (bring book & creative project, tell a summary)
Due Thursday: order form & payment for End-of-the-Year School Picnic (form attached)
Friday: Sports Day & Olympic Day! In the morning are tests on vocabulary, and fractions & median; dress for an active afternoon having Olympic fun!
Coming: Tue, 6/1: Lambshead class Talent Show (see attached form on blue paper)
Wed, 6/2: All 2nd Grade Field Day & Picnic at Fox Park
Thurs, 6/3: Last day/hour of school. Dismissal at 9; PBIS Celebration at Rehm Pool
Kudos to all who have turned in your Super Summer Math registration!!
Instead of a paper study guide for our fraction test, have fun practicing fractions and equivalencies with these computer fraction games!
• Fraction Flags (http://www.oswego.org/ocsd-web/games/fractionflags/fractionflags.html) - Design a flag using halves and quarters
• What Is a Fraction? (http://www.jamit.com.au/htmlFolder/app1001.html)- Game in which you have to identify the fraction pictured and color in a given fraction.
• Pizza Party (http://www.primarygames.com/fractions) - Tell what fraction of the pizza is left
Monday, May 10, 2010
Week Of May 10, 2010
ArtStart! This is the week we build houses and public buildings, using the assortment of boxes I’ve asked you to collect. Our Architecture ArtStart program has enhanced learning in so many ways. For last week’s lego hourses, and this week’s box buildings, we are practicing how to determine the perimeter and area of each. Next week we will be urban planners, and design a community using all of our buildings.
We are at the final stage of our dinosaur research writing process: sharing! The students have done a fantastic job, having had consistent, dedicated support from Kai’s and Julian’s moms!!! Most students did their own typing, and we now we can share our published work in 3 ways: reading aloud to the class, making a class Big Book, publishing on the internet! I hope to have it linked on both my blog as well as the school webpage.
For reading and social studies on the different cultures within our country, this week we read “The First Americans”; this nonfiction work is full of interesting information about the native people of different regions of our country. Vocabulary: wampum, tundra, tepees, warriors. Our spelling words are all prefixes: redo, retake, rename, retry, retest, uneven, unpack, unlock, unroll, unsure.
Math: Our work with fractions continues. The most important concept for the students to master is that the bottom number (denominator) tells the total number of equal parts, and the top number (numerator) is the number of parts we are talking about. Parents, look for real-life situations at home where you use fractions, especially in the kitchen.
Social Studies: We finish our study of Government by studying the national government, democracy, and nations working together around the world. Test on Friday.
Homework
Daily: read for 20 minutes, plan now for your final book report (Kudos to Jane who has already done hers!), do cursive & home link the night they come home; practice spelling, math facts (for mental math quizzes) and vocabulary
Due by Wednesday: 10 or more boxes, no larger than a shoe box; also, Spelling workbook, pages 122-125 (or substitute challenge sentences for 124-125).
For Friday: twin day; be ready for tests: social studies (Government), spelling, reading, vocab.
Coming…
Tue, 5/18, 6-7 PM: Mark your calendar for the special Room 203 Open House, celebrating creation of “Our Town” (note change of date)
Thurs, 5/20: Last day for book reports
Fri, 5/21: Olympic Day! Last day to turn in PBIS Pool Party permission slips.
Wed, 6/2: 2nd Grade End-of-the-Year Picnic at Fox Park
Thurs, 6/3: Last day/hour of school. Dismissal at 9 AM; PBIS Pool Celebration at Rehm Pool from 9:45 – 11:45.
For Parents to do….
* Please call Lori Bradford if you can help spray paint our buildings this Thursday or Friday!
* Please fill out the survey of our PBIS (Positive Behavior Incentive System), either online
(http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MXJWFF5) or, pick up a hard copy in the office, which is due to the office Wednesday morning.
* Also, do your kids like Tasty Dog? My adult kids still do, so I’m treating them to Tasty Dog this Thursday, because Longfellow will receive a percentage of all sales designated as Longfellow friends or families. The district elementary school with the highest participation will also receive $200. Come out and support Longfellow School on this easy, tasty Fundraiser!
My Classroom Blog: http://d97lambshead.blogspot.com/
Digital backpack: http://www.op97.org/longfellow/digitalbackpack/ Mrs. Dolezal’s Blog: http://d97dolezalsdesktop.blogspot.com/ PTO: http://www.longfellow-pto.org
We are at the final stage of our dinosaur research writing process: sharing! The students have done a fantastic job, having had consistent, dedicated support from Kai’s and Julian’s moms!!! Most students did their own typing, and we now we can share our published work in 3 ways: reading aloud to the class, making a class Big Book, publishing on the internet! I hope to have it linked on both my blog as well as the school webpage.
For reading and social studies on the different cultures within our country, this week we read “The First Americans”; this nonfiction work is full of interesting information about the native people of different regions of our country. Vocabulary: wampum, tundra, tepees, warriors. Our spelling words are all prefixes: redo, retake, rename, retry, retest, uneven, unpack, unlock, unroll, unsure.
Math: Our work with fractions continues. The most important concept for the students to master is that the bottom number (denominator) tells the total number of equal parts, and the top number (numerator) is the number of parts we are talking about. Parents, look for real-life situations at home where you use fractions, especially in the kitchen.
Social Studies: We finish our study of Government by studying the national government, democracy, and nations working together around the world. Test on Friday.
Homework
Daily: read for 20 minutes, plan now for your final book report (Kudos to Jane who has already done hers!), do cursive & home link the night they come home; practice spelling, math facts (for mental math quizzes) and vocabulary
Due by Wednesday: 10 or more boxes, no larger than a shoe box; also, Spelling workbook, pages 122-125 (or substitute challenge sentences for 124-125).
For Friday: twin day; be ready for tests: social studies (Government), spelling, reading, vocab.
Coming…
Tue, 5/18, 6-7 PM: Mark your calendar for the special Room 203 Open House, celebrating creation of “Our Town” (note change of date)
Thurs, 5/20: Last day for book reports
Fri, 5/21: Olympic Day! Last day to turn in PBIS Pool Party permission slips.
Wed, 6/2: 2nd Grade End-of-the-Year Picnic at Fox Park
Thurs, 6/3: Last day/hour of school. Dismissal at 9 AM; PBIS Pool Celebration at Rehm Pool from 9:45 – 11:45.
For Parents to do….
* Please call Lori Bradford if you can help spray paint our buildings this Thursday or Friday!
* Please fill out the survey of our PBIS (Positive Behavior Incentive System), either online
(http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MXJWFF5) or, pick up a hard copy in the office, which is due to the office Wednesday morning.
* Also, do your kids like Tasty Dog? My adult kids still do, so I’m treating them to Tasty Dog this Thursday, because Longfellow will receive a percentage of all sales designated as Longfellow friends or families. The district elementary school with the highest participation will also receive $200. Come out and support Longfellow School on this easy, tasty Fundraiser!
My Classroom Blog: http://d97lambshead.blogspot.com/
Digital backpack: http://www.op97.org/longfellow/digitalbackpack/ Mrs. Dolezal’s Blog: http://d97dolezalsdesktop.blogspot.com/ PTO: http://www.longfellow-pto.org
Monday, May 3, 2010
Week of May 3, 2010
Lice are still being found on heads; Check your child’s head frequently, & if still needed, do the lice treatment and buy a $2. narrow-tooth comb at Petco to remove nits!
Congratulations to our classroom spelling bee winners, who will represent us in the 2nd grade Spelling Bee on May 14: Eleanor, Nina, Sydney, and Kai!
The students really enjoyed learning about pioneers last week, and did fine writing about it!! Naper Settlement, with its excellent docents, gave us an authentic experience of life in the 1800s. On Friday, those bringing a “pioneer lunch” had a terrific conversation about the different items in the lunches, ie, what parts a pioneer would have grown or made or bought. They really did some great thinking!
We will read another story about an African-American pioneer family this week, “A Place called Freedom”. The vocabulary words are: plantation, fretted, settlement, sturdy, weary. Our spelling words are all compound words: maybe, inside, bedroom, lunchroom, myself, nobody, sunrise, himself, railroad, everyone.
We are reviewing math Unit 7, and will have our test on Wednesday. Skills include: using complements of 10 to do mental addition; number-grid puzzles; counting by 2s, 5s, 10s and describing the pattern; measuring length (cm/in); plotting data on a bar graph; finding the median. Then we’ll start Unit 8 on Fractions (parent letter is attached.)
The students have done a fabulous job researching “their” dinosaur, and writing 3 paragraphs describing it. Today we wrote a generic group introductory paragraph. Now that the editing is complete, we’re hard-at-work typing on the computers, trying to finish by the end of the week. We’ll produce a class big-book (ie, Dinosaur Encyclopedia!), and I hope to mount their work on the internet as well.
In ArtStart this week we make Lego houses, next week is each student constructing a house or building out of boxes. Please let me know if your schedule enables you to help us out both Wednesdays (5/5 & 5/12) from 12:30 – 1:45.
Homework: It’s Fitness Week!
Daily: read for 20 minutes; study basic math facts for Mental Math quizzes; cursive.
Due Wed: Math test, Spelling workbook, pages 130-33 (& wear sweats for ACES).
Thursday: 6:30 – 7:30 PM, Come to Family Math Night at Longfellow;
Friday: spelling test; PJ day
Saturday: Fun Run at Lindberg Park
Due next week: at least 10 boxes here by Wed, 5/12, to make your Art Start building; Book Report due date has been pushed back to Thurs, 5/20,
All parents: let your voice be heard, and fill our Longfellow’s SIT parent survey sometime this week: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MXJWFF5
Congratulations to our classroom spelling bee winners, who will represent us in the 2nd grade Spelling Bee on May 14: Eleanor, Nina, Sydney, and Kai!
The students really enjoyed learning about pioneers last week, and did fine writing about it!! Naper Settlement, with its excellent docents, gave us an authentic experience of life in the 1800s. On Friday, those bringing a “pioneer lunch” had a terrific conversation about the different items in the lunches, ie, what parts a pioneer would have grown or made or bought. They really did some great thinking!
We will read another story about an African-American pioneer family this week, “A Place called Freedom”. The vocabulary words are: plantation, fretted, settlement, sturdy, weary. Our spelling words are all compound words: maybe, inside, bedroom, lunchroom, myself, nobody, sunrise, himself, railroad, everyone.
We are reviewing math Unit 7, and will have our test on Wednesday. Skills include: using complements of 10 to do mental addition; number-grid puzzles; counting by 2s, 5s, 10s and describing the pattern; measuring length (cm/in); plotting data on a bar graph; finding the median. Then we’ll start Unit 8 on Fractions (parent letter is attached.)
The students have done a fabulous job researching “their” dinosaur, and writing 3 paragraphs describing it. Today we wrote a generic group introductory paragraph. Now that the editing is complete, we’re hard-at-work typing on the computers, trying to finish by the end of the week. We’ll produce a class big-book (ie, Dinosaur Encyclopedia!), and I hope to mount their work on the internet as well.
In ArtStart this week we make Lego houses, next week is each student constructing a house or building out of boxes. Please let me know if your schedule enables you to help us out both Wednesdays (5/5 & 5/12) from 12:30 – 1:45.
Homework: It’s Fitness Week!
Daily: read for 20 minutes; study basic math facts for Mental Math quizzes; cursive.
Due Wed: Math test, Spelling workbook, pages 130-33 (& wear sweats for ACES).
Thursday: 6:30 – 7:30 PM, Come to Family Math Night at Longfellow;
Friday: spelling test; PJ day
Saturday: Fun Run at Lindberg Park
Due next week: at least 10 boxes here by Wed, 5/12, to make your Art Start building; Book Report due date has been pushed back to Thurs, 5/20,
All parents: let your voice be heard, and fill our Longfellow’s SIT parent survey sometime this week: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MXJWFF5
Monday, April 26, 2010
Week of April 26, 2010
Our 2 main themes this week: Pioneers (reading & social studies), and Dinosaurs (research, writing, science art).
Pioneers: We will read Wagon Wheels, based on a true story of an African American pioneer family, and “New Hope” historical fiction by a Dane, about a Danish pioneer family (& probably based on some of his own family history). “New Hope” is part of our final reading unit: “Our Country and Its People”. Learn to use these vocabulary words: ferried, recycling, brisk, invitation, citizens, bustling. Our field trip on Thursday to Naper Settlement will enable us to walk through history, noting the sequence of pioneer life, from the covered wagon, to a log cabin, to a community with a one-room schoolhouse, blacksmith shop & post office, to an elegant mansion. Each year, the students’ favorite site is the schoolhouse, and they want to have a pioneer school day. So that’s what we’ll do (as much as possible) on Friday. (See Homework section below.)
Math: We will explore the use of numbers and measurements in more real-life situations—arm spans, long jumps, weighing things. We will also collect & organize our data to find the median (middle value). We’ll finish up and review this unit early next week, then move on to Fractions.
Homework
Daily: read for 20 minutes (Have you chosen the book you’ll do your final book report on?); study those basic math facts for our Mon/Wed/Fri Mental Math quizzes, carefully practice cursive.
For tomorrow: rescheduled vocabulary test on courage words
Due Wed: Spelling workbook, pages 126-9.
Thursday: Naper Settlement Field trip – mostly outdoors – dress for walking & the weather!! Bring your lunch & drink (ecological lunchboxes are welcome!)
Friday: spelling test; no reading or vocabulary test. Optional Pioneer Day! pack lunch that pioneers would have eaten; see if you can bring it to school in pioneer packaging (ie, no plastic!); girls wear skirts or dresses & bring “hand-work” to school to do at recess time.
Saturday, 10 – 3:30: Ethnic Fest at Whittier School, starting with the Parade; come and go as you your schedule permits.
Due next Monday: final Story Map (4 total due since spring vacation).
Thursday, May 6, 6:30 – 7:30 PM: Come to Math Night at Longfellow; see digital backpack for more info. The class with largest % turnout wins a prize
Wonderful causes, worthy of your donations:
* Oak Park Education Foundation (funds our ArtStart program)
* Help third grade meet their goal of $2010. Tax-ded. checks can be written to CROP/CWS.
* Longfellow’s technology fund-raiser: candy sale.
Pioneers: We will read Wagon Wheels, based on a true story of an African American pioneer family, and “New Hope” historical fiction by a Dane, about a Danish pioneer family (& probably based on some of his own family history). “New Hope” is part of our final reading unit: “Our Country and Its People”. Learn to use these vocabulary words: ferried, recycling, brisk, invitation, citizens, bustling. Our field trip on Thursday to Naper Settlement will enable us to walk through history, noting the sequence of pioneer life, from the covered wagon, to a log cabin, to a community with a one-room schoolhouse, blacksmith shop & post office, to an elegant mansion. Each year, the students’ favorite site is the schoolhouse, and they want to have a pioneer school day. So that’s what we’ll do (as much as possible) on Friday. (See Homework section below.)
Math: We will explore the use of numbers and measurements in more real-life situations—arm spans, long jumps, weighing things. We will also collect & organize our data to find the median (middle value). We’ll finish up and review this unit early next week, then move on to Fractions.
Homework
Daily: read for 20 minutes (Have you chosen the book you’ll do your final book report on?); study those basic math facts for our Mon/Wed/Fri Mental Math quizzes, carefully practice cursive.
For tomorrow: rescheduled vocabulary test on courage words
Due Wed: Spelling workbook, pages 126-9.
Thursday: Naper Settlement Field trip – mostly outdoors – dress for walking & the weather!! Bring your lunch & drink (ecological lunchboxes are welcome!)
Friday: spelling test; no reading or vocabulary test. Optional Pioneer Day! pack lunch that pioneers would have eaten; see if you can bring it to school in pioneer packaging (ie, no plastic!); girls wear skirts or dresses & bring “hand-work” to school to do at recess time.
Saturday, 10 – 3:30: Ethnic Fest at Whittier School, starting with the Parade; come and go as you your schedule permits.
Due next Monday: final Story Map (4 total due since spring vacation).
Thursday, May 6, 6:30 – 7:30 PM: Come to Math Night at Longfellow; see digital backpack for more info. The class with largest % turnout wins a prize
Wonderful causes, worthy of your donations:
* Oak Park Education Foundation (funds our ArtStart program)
* Help third grade meet their goal of $2010. Tax-ded. checks can be written to CROP/CWS.
* Longfellow’s technology fund-raiser: candy sale.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Week of April 19,2010
News from Ms. Lambshead’s Second Grade Class
Week of April 19
I know of 2 students from our classroom who found head lice last week. Please check your child’s scalp today, especially above the ears & in the back at the neckline. Do not send your child to school until fully treated, because spreading lice to someone else means you may get it again yourself! Attached is a letter from Nurse Pam, with excellent instructions for each family affected.
The students are learning so well in so many areas!
~~ Learning architectural features from our Art Start artist, Ms. Greve! Has your child told you or showed you some of the architectural features s/he learned?
~~ Excellent work on last week’s math test (attached)– most mistakes were careless.
~~ Our research is moving along well, as we use our note cards to organize & write paragraphs describing the dinosaur, then describing its habitat.
~~ Spelling unfamiliar words well in our classroom Spell-off, to see who would represent us at the 2nd grade Spelling Bee on Fri, 5/14. Our winners are: Sydney, Kai, Nina & Eleanor!
This 4-day week is packed full!
~It’s Earth Week at Longfellow (see schedule below in italics); we’ll celebrate Earth Day on Thursday with a daytime assembly and then Family Reading Night! Think of our environment and walk or carpool to school; bring in gently used books to exchange at the Family Reading Night!
~With ArtStart we build with Froebel Blocks, as Frank Lloyd Wright did (Tuesday); then on Thursday we’ll tour his famous home and studio, see other home he designed, and compare them with Victorian homes.
Language Arts We will review our Courage stories, and then take the series of Unit tests. Therefore, we will not have our regular spelling or reading tests. As time allows, we’ll begin our next unit on “Our Country and Its People” by reading a few non-fiction selections, one on Native Americans (“The First Americans”, an appropriate selection for Earth Week, since the Native Americans showed so much respect for nature & the environment.) and one about an African-American Pioneer family (Wagon Wheels).
Today’s math lesson will include measurement of your child’s dinosaur. See if s/he can describe its size to you, as well as tell you how many feet long it is! We are also extending our learning of “complements of 10” and doubles, and measuring.
In Social Studies we’re reading about Laws & Leaders, and solving conflicts.
Homework:
What book are you thinking of using for your final book report?
Have you begun collecting boxes for your ArtStart building (on 5/12)?
Daily: read for 20 minutes; practice cursive, math facts, home link
Optional: Think about the architectural features Ms Greve taught us; think about the geometric shapes you know, and draw the front “elevation” of your house or apartment.
Today: Last day to turn in Spring picture orders!
For tomorrow: wear blue to show the power of recycling; preferred deadline for bringing in books to swap.
Due Wednesday: Pack a lunch with reusable containers
For Thursday: Courage Vocabulary test. Wear walking shoes & dress for the weather for our FLW field trip; Come to Family Reading Night, 6:30 -7:30, with your book exchange coupon to get “new” books to enjoy!
Friday: NO SCHOOL! Enjoy learning outside of school!!
Due next Monday: story map
Coming:
~~next Thursday, 4/29: all-day field trip to see pioneer life at Naper Settlement
~~Friday, April 30: Pioneer Day in Room 203 (optional: dress like a pioneer, bring a pioneer lunch, in pioneer containers/wrapping.)
~~Saturday, May 1: The Ethnic Fest—take a trip around the world at Whittier School (Harvey & Augusta! Join Longfellow friends walking in the Parade at 10; throughout the day enjoy great music, dance and food from many cultures. Hang out with friends in the sunshine!
~~Saturday, May 8: Fun Run for kids at all the schools, at Lindberg Park (on Marion at LeMoyne Parkway). Check out the Longfellow website for a sign up form, for this free, fun event!
Donate to:
CROP: to help 3rd grader walkers raise funds for hungry folk near & far.
The Feinstein Challenge: The Student Council is also collecting money & non-perishable food for the OPRF Food Pantry because Mr. Alan Shaw Feinstein will match all donations.
The PTO to support updating Longfellow’s computer technology (or buy at the candy sale.
Trade: bring in gently used books so you can get “reused” books on 4/22
Bring: in a water bottle with your name on it (April’s theme of hydration. Nourish to Flourish also emphasizes handwashing & wearing a bike helmet.)
Keep up-to-date on all of this and more by using the school & district digital backpack! (See Longfellow’s homepage.)
Can you help supervise our ArtStart building? If so, please let me know!
~~Lego houses on 5/5 at 12:30
~~Cardboard houses & public buildings on 5/12 at 12:30
Week of April 19
I know of 2 students from our classroom who found head lice last week. Please check your child’s scalp today, especially above the ears & in the back at the neckline. Do not send your child to school until fully treated, because spreading lice to someone else means you may get it again yourself! Attached is a letter from Nurse Pam, with excellent instructions for each family affected.
The students are learning so well in so many areas!
~~ Learning architectural features from our Art Start artist, Ms. Greve! Has your child told you or showed you some of the architectural features s/he learned?
~~ Excellent work on last week’s math test (attached)– most mistakes were careless.
~~ Our research is moving along well, as we use our note cards to organize & write paragraphs describing the dinosaur, then describing its habitat.
~~ Spelling unfamiliar words well in our classroom Spell-off, to see who would represent us at the 2nd grade Spelling Bee on Fri, 5/14. Our winners are: Sydney, Kai, Nina & Eleanor!
This 4-day week is packed full!
~It’s Earth Week at Longfellow (see schedule below in italics); we’ll celebrate Earth Day on Thursday with a daytime assembly and then Family Reading Night! Think of our environment and walk or carpool to school; bring in gently used books to exchange at the Family Reading Night!
~With ArtStart we build with Froebel Blocks, as Frank Lloyd Wright did (Tuesday); then on Thursday we’ll tour his famous home and studio, see other home he designed, and compare them with Victorian homes.
Language Arts We will review our Courage stories, and then take the series of Unit tests. Therefore, we will not have our regular spelling or reading tests. As time allows, we’ll begin our next unit on “Our Country and Its People” by reading a few non-fiction selections, one on Native Americans (“The First Americans”, an appropriate selection for Earth Week, since the Native Americans showed so much respect for nature & the environment.) and one about an African-American Pioneer family (Wagon Wheels).
Today’s math lesson will include measurement of your child’s dinosaur. See if s/he can describe its size to you, as well as tell you how many feet long it is! We are also extending our learning of “complements of 10” and doubles, and measuring.
In Social Studies we’re reading about Laws & Leaders, and solving conflicts.
Homework:
What book are you thinking of using for your final book report?
Have you begun collecting boxes for your ArtStart building (on 5/12)?
Daily: read for 20 minutes; practice cursive, math facts, home link
Optional: Think about the architectural features Ms Greve taught us; think about the geometric shapes you know, and draw the front “elevation” of your house or apartment.
Today: Last day to turn in Spring picture orders!
For tomorrow: wear blue to show the power of recycling; preferred deadline for bringing in books to swap.
Due Wednesday: Pack a lunch with reusable containers
For Thursday: Courage Vocabulary test. Wear walking shoes & dress for the weather for our FLW field trip; Come to Family Reading Night, 6:30 -7:30, with your book exchange coupon to get “new” books to enjoy!
Friday: NO SCHOOL! Enjoy learning outside of school!!
Due next Monday: story map
Coming:
~~next Thursday, 4/29: all-day field trip to see pioneer life at Naper Settlement
~~Friday, April 30: Pioneer Day in Room 203 (optional: dress like a pioneer, bring a pioneer lunch, in pioneer containers/wrapping.)
~~Saturday, May 1: The Ethnic Fest—take a trip around the world at Whittier School (Harvey & Augusta! Join Longfellow friends walking in the Parade at 10; throughout the day enjoy great music, dance and food from many cultures. Hang out with friends in the sunshine!
~~Saturday, May 8: Fun Run for kids at all the schools, at Lindberg Park (on Marion at LeMoyne Parkway). Check out the Longfellow website for a sign up form, for this free, fun event!
Donate to:
CROP: to help 3rd grader walkers raise funds for hungry folk near & far.
The Feinstein Challenge: The Student Council is also collecting money & non-perishable food for the OPRF Food Pantry because Mr. Alan Shaw Feinstein will match all donations.
The PTO to support updating Longfellow’s computer technology (or buy at the candy sale.
Trade: bring in gently used books so you can get “reused” books on 4/22
Bring: in a water bottle with your name on it (April’s theme of hydration. Nourish to Flourish also emphasizes handwashing & wearing a bike helmet.)
Keep up-to-date on all of this and more by using the school & district digital backpack! (See Longfellow’s homepage.)
Can you help supervise our ArtStart building? If so, please let me know!
~~Lego houses on 5/5 at 12:30
~~Cardboard houses & public buildings on 5/12 at 12:30
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