Happy return to our fabulous school and to a new year full of new learning.
Here is the door to our Grade Two classroom.
Melanie Watt is one funny author. Her series about Scaredy Squirrel made her one of my favourites.
When I saw this book, I knew that it would be the perfect 'back to school' kick off literature. Thanks to Linda Kamp for so generously sharing her ideas on how to make this story come alive.
The bunny (main character) in the story wants to know what took the reader so long to get to read the book.
The students shared many of their reasons, why it took them so long to get to Grade Two.
This included their need to finish their vacations, or do their chores, or complete the back to school shopping. The second question that was posed to them was what they needed to do before they could have started school, way back before Kindergarten. Those answers were more precious....they needed to learn how to get dressed on their own, or put on their own shoes, or walk!
Each student took their favourite answer and along with a photo of themselves, wrote it in a speech bubble. It is a cute display right outside of our classroom!
Let's go on a little tour of our classroom, as it has been changed a bit from last year.
There are many small spaces for students to sit and work, or read, or be on their own away from others, if the need be. As you walk into the classroom, there is a little seating area.
Right behind the little couch and chairs is one of our meeting areas, with two benches and a comfy rug. On the back wall is our calendar, birthday chart along with some activities that will help the students work with numbers using mental math.
I didn't have the lights on so the photos look a little dull, but in reality, our classroom is bright and cheery. There are currently 22 students assigned to our classroom. We have four sets of hexagon tables that allow for 24 students to each have a table spot.
In the centre of the room I have a small round table with four stools, that allows for little groups to work with me, or to move to if there is a need to get closer to the board, or get away from others so that work can be completed with the time given. Sometimes, students find what their table partners are saying more interesting than their own assignments!
Here's a look from the back of the classroom towards the west.
Here's a look at the back wall of the classroom, which has my favourite feature...a sink!!!
We work with community supplies, so there are always pencils, erasers, and gluesticks available for everyone to use at the table. Each student has a cubby that holds a stash box with pencil crayons, another box for highlighters, a folder for work that needs to be finished and a few other items. Each chair has a 'chair pocket' where the students keep their kanga pouch during the day along with a 'Rise and Shine' binder. Another blog post will feature the learning that we do using this tool.
I moved the word wall to this location and used larger printed cards because the expectation is that these words, which were learned as part of the spelling program in Grade One, are words that the students can spell on their own, correctly, every time. This expectation will include the new words we will learn in Grade Two as time goes on.
In this far corner are the book boxes that the students choose their 'read at home' books from. These get transferred into the white magazine boxes. Each student has one, and they will choose which books that they would like to read from there nightly. It is part of our daily routine.
I saw this cute idea by Marsha McQuire and knew that I wanted to see my own students create a monster! We read Ed Eberly's book 'Goodbye, Big Green Monster' and then used our imaginations to create bright vibrant monsters, some with only one eye, or one tooth, pink hair or a pair of antennae. They brighten up the area above where the students hang their coats in the hallway.
Our school district chooses a 'theme' to guide our journey closer to God each year.
this year's theme is "We are God's Masterpiece" Ephesians 2:10
Expect to see connections made with these words throughout all that we do!
Learning to read fluently is at the forefront of every primary classroom's agenda.
This year, the students are to read to someone every night for a minimum of 15 minutes. Once the child does read to grandparents, babysitters, parents, or older siblings, that adult figure will write their initials onto one of the stars ( you don't have to try and fit them into the star!). I have chosen a bookmark recorder because the more difficult books cannot be completed in one night. The bookmark will keep your child's place until they read the next day, and will also serve as the recording sheet keeping them accountable for their nightly reading. There are 20 stars on a book mark and the goal is to finish a bookmark each month. When it is finished, all the bookmarks are put into a 'draw' and one lucky reader will get to choose a larger prize.
The nightly reading book and the bookmark are stored in the front clear pouch of the Kanga Pouch, that travels from home to school and back again each day.
The agenda, notes, folders of completed work, monies, and all other papers are put into the second back blue pocket of the the Kanga Pouch.
If you 'follow me' on the blog, you will get notification on your device each and every time I post.
This blog is your main 'window' into the classroom learning. I will be sending the new families some sheets that need to be signed so that your kiddos can be part of the blog. If you look back through the previous years' posts, you will see that the students are always featured, showing how much they are growing in their knowledge, and in their journey towards Jesus.
Remember that I will SELDOM send you paper notes home so please take the time to check this blog, at least every second day. I will try to post a minimum of twice a week.
