It has been an amazing first full week of school. We have had so many successes that I am even more excited than ever to be teaching. What great kids you have! I am so lucky to have them in my room and have the opportunity to teach them and learn from them.
Just a few notes of interest:
No School Monday - Labor Day
Parent Information night (with free pizza and daycare) is on Wednesday the 5th. This will be something you don't want to miss!
Friday the 7th - Book Orders are due
I am going to be starting a "Typing Club" next week just for fun. I'd like to introduce the kids to keyboarding and using the computer more independently, but I just don't have enough time with them during the day. So many books to read, so little time... So I decided I'd hold Typing Club from 8:00 to 8:25 every morning in my room. Kids will be selected depending on a number of things and will join the club for a full month. During the month they are assigned to we will be working on a number of different skills. Some days the will simply be playing a keyboarding skills specific CD-rom by themselves, other days we will do a whole group lesson. Though kids will be assigned a month, they don't have to come every day. Remember, this is just for fun - not required by any means. The more they are able to come to typing club the more they will learn and progress, so keep it in mind as a good use of time. If you don't want your child to participate I don't have any problem with that.
The kids that I am hoping will join me for Typing Club for the month of September are:
Robby, Kiera, Asia, Amber, and Alex.
I'll keep an updated list on the blog, so you can be aware of when your child could be a part of our club. Every child will have an opportunity to be a part of this during the school year.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me. The best way is via email or the comments area on the blog. Thanks for your support!
-Mrs. Biles
Friday, August 31, 2007
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Great Day!
Today we learned how to play Turn Over Ten for math. We have been playing Tens Go Fish also. Cards and rules were sent home today for both of these games. You will not be getting any "worksheet" type homework for math, but it is VERY important that you play these games with your kids as often as you can (nightly if possible).
Having Channel 4 news here was a success. The segment will air in about 4 weeks. I'll let you know the specific day when I hear back from them.
Great learning is happing in our classroom!
Keep reading every night for 20 minutes!
Having Channel 4 news here was a success. The segment will air in about 4 weeks. I'll let you know the specific day when I hear back from them.
Great learning is happing in our classroom!
Keep reading every night for 20 minutes!
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Bad Case of Stripes
Today we heard the story "A Bad Case of Stripes" by David Shannon. We watched it from http://storylineonline.net
Now you can go there and watch it again!
Don't forget that you need to bring 3 stamped and addressed envelopes to school by Friday! Our Flat Stanleys will soon be traveling around the world!
Also, look for book orders coming home soon. Those will be due back next Friday, September 7th. It is a great way to get high quality books, and it helps me to get books for free that I can give to kids on a regular basis (like the "Fantastic Frogs" book and Friday kids will get to keep a copy of "Flat Stanley"). Being able to give every kid a copy of a book like that is only made possible through your book orders.
What a fantastic day! We look forward to having Channel 4 news in our room tomorrow.
Now you can go there and watch it again!
Don't forget that you need to bring 3 stamped and addressed envelopes to school by Friday! Our Flat Stanleys will soon be traveling around the world!
Also, look for book orders coming home soon. Those will be due back next Friday, September 7th. It is a great way to get high quality books, and it helps me to get books for free that I can give to kids on a regular basis (like the "Fantastic Frogs" book and Friday kids will get to keep a copy of "Flat Stanley"). Being able to give every kid a copy of a book like that is only made possible through your book orders.
What a fantastic day! We look forward to having Channel 4 news in our room tomorrow.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Great Learning!
We had a very successful day today. As we started reading "Flat Stanley" I let the kids pair up and buddy read. What a success! 
Today we learned to play the game "Tens go Fish". It is played just like go fish, but we are putting together pairs that equal ten. What great math brains we have in our room!
Today we learned to play the game "Tens go Fish". It is played just like go fish, but we are putting together pairs that equal ten. What great math brains we have in our room!
Monday, August 27, 2007
What a Start!
We are taking off like a rocket ship in our classroom. It has been amazing to see what my students know. We have been talking a lot in our room about Justice and its synonym Fairness. Through many conversations about about how we demonstrate justice in our classroom we have agreed that we will all follow the four school rules: Respect, Responsibility, Kindness, and Learning. As long as we follow these four rules we will have a community of learners that feel safe to try new things.
Many of our conversations about books have been revolving around how to read like writers. It might sound like a funny idea at first, but suddenly we are noticing not only what the book is about, but how it was written. Some of our noticings have included: repeated lines, words within pictures, pop-ups, lift the flap, books without words, and genres of texts. It is quite amazing that even though we are only beginning second grade, we are already thinking about books in a way that allows us to learn from them. If you get a chance to stop by the hallway outside our door you will notice traces of these writing styles in our own writing. I'm sure it would enthrall you to hear about why one student used a repeating line or how another wrote only in questions. Not only are they noticing these things in published books and trying them in their own writing, but they can tell you WHY they tried it.
Math has been a great adventure as well. In second grade we will be focusing on tens. We have started learning that you can group tens in many different ways through the use of manipulatives. It is important that students begin to not only understand, but apply the idea of base ten. We will soon be sending home two card games: Tens Go Fish, and Turn Over Ten. Please make a special time where you can play these games each day with your child. The cards (that will be run off on card stock) will be used over and over again throughout the year, so make sure you find a safe place for them!
In other exciting news: On Thursday August 30th Channel 4 News will be visiting our classroom. Through a program that they do called "Pay it 4ward" (http://cbs4denver.com/payit4ward) they will be observing and interviewing some of the kids and myself about how we are using technology in the classroom. They will then be giving us a check to go towards a new SMART Board (www.smarttech.com) for our school. If, for any reason, you do not want your child to be a part of this please let me know and I will make arrangements for your child to visit another classroom during that time. I don't currently know when it will air on TV, but keep your eyes open for it and if I find out before hand I'll let you know.
Many of our conversations about books have been revolving around how to read like writers. It might sound like a funny idea at first, but suddenly we are noticing not only what the book is about, but how it was written. Some of our noticings have included: repeated lines, words within pictures, pop-ups, lift the flap, books without words, and genres of texts. It is quite amazing that even though we are only beginning second grade, we are already thinking about books in a way that allows us to learn from them. If you get a chance to stop by the hallway outside our door you will notice traces of these writing styles in our own writing. I'm sure it would enthrall you to hear about why one student used a repeating line or how another wrote only in questions. Not only are they noticing these things in published books and trying them in their own writing, but they can tell you WHY they tried it.
Math has been a great adventure as well. In second grade we will be focusing on tens. We have started learning that you can group tens in many different ways through the use of manipulatives. It is important that students begin to not only understand, but apply the idea of base ten. We will soon be sending home two card games: Tens Go Fish, and Turn Over Ten. Please make a special time where you can play these games each day with your child. The cards (that will be run off on card stock) will be used over and over again throughout the year, so make sure you find a safe place for them!
In other exciting news: On Thursday August 30th Channel 4 News will be visiting our classroom. Through a program that they do called "Pay it 4ward" (http://cbs4denver.com/payit4ward) they will be observing and interviewing some of the kids and myself about how we are using technology in the classroom. They will then be giving us a check to go towards a new SMART Board (www.smarttech.com) for our school. If, for any reason, you do not want your child to be a part of this please let me know and I will make arrangements for your child to visit another classroom during that time. I don't currently know when it will air on TV, but keep your eyes open for it and if I find out before hand I'll let you know.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Welcome Back!
We had a great first week of school! We learned everything from how to do lunch count to reading and manipulating blocks into groups of ten. We also had a birthday celebration. With such a great start we are sure to have a great year!
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