Week 18

Good evening!

We are in the home stretch! I have a feeling this week is going to fly by! On Wednesday we have our Greek Festival, which will be a lot of fun. We need lots of volunteers, so if you are interested in helping out and haven't signed up yet, please talk to Sandra!

Last week we helped stuff stockings for foster children and orphans! We had a lot of fun with this service project, and there are going to be some very happy children come Christmas day!

Here is what we have coming up this week:

Spalding: We will be reviewing old words that were frequently missed. We will test these on Thursday! Words: child, far, form, cent, little, third, sick, mail, two, watch, happen, sight, follow, pleasant, account, feather, lead (the way), led (the way), lead (pencil), tripped

Grammar: We are discussing titles of respect and reviewing quotations and the four types of sentences (imperative, declarative, interrogative, exclamatory)

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from The Young Man and the Cat. We will also be writing "secret student" letters as homework. Every student will get the name of a student to write a letter to, and the letters will be passed out on Friday.

Math: We will be continuing to review multiples of 3 and play some multiplication games!

History: We will review Ancient Greece in class on Monday with a game, and then we will test on Tuesday!

Science: We are continuing insects and have a fun honeybee craft. :)

Idiom: "in hot water"

Poem: The Night Before Christmas - We will recite this in small groups on Friday!

We have typing on Monday, as usual. I will be sending out the link and log-in information a little later this week, so that your child can practice typing over Winter Break should they want to!

I think that's all I have for now! Have a wonderful week!

Week 17

Good afternoon! I hope everyone is having a good weekend! I've been keeping busy - ran a 15k this morning with Ms. Hofstaedter (kindergarten teacher) and another good friend of mine. :)

picture post race - 1:23 finish time!

Okay, here's what we have coming up this week: (Please note that I will be out for professional development on Monday and Friday, so please email Ms. Carnahan for immediate responses. I will check email throughout the day as I can and again in the evening.)

Literature: We will have our Boxcar Children test on Tuesday! This will be an open book test, so please have your child bring their book back to school for the test if they have it at home. I have two extra books for anyone who needs to borrow it during the test, but it will be first come, first served. We will also present our Boxcar dioramas this week! I look forward to seeing them!

Spalding: Words: noise, pencil, pie, pull, sew, sow, so, steam, thread, thunder, tried, try, vein, except, aunt, ant, capture, else, bridge, offer, suffer, center, front, running, run, rule, carry, chain, death, learn. Spelling Test on Friday! We will take our written portion of the spelling bee on Monday! Those who get 100% on the written test will get to participate in the class oral bee on Thursday. The winner from each class will compete at the Arete spelling bee.

WWE: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

Grammar: Shurley English - question and answer flow identifying prepositions; First Language Lessons - story narration and direct quotations within The Little Red Hen

Touch Pebbles: The Pillow - Discussion question: Is it easier to give advice or take advice? Why?

Math: We have our 1-5 Cumulative Test on Monday! We will really be focusing on multiplying by 2's and 3's this week and memorizing those math facts. We'll test this on Friday! (Unit 6.1)

History: We continue to study Ancient Greece and will learn about Sparta, the Olympic games, and the Persian Wars. Wednesday's lesson in particular will get us ready for our Greek Festival next week! ;)

Science: In science we are continuing our insect unit and learning about social versus solitary insects - ones that work together in colonies versus ones that are found alone. We will read about bees, wasps, ants, and termites in particular.

We are also doing our MOY (middle of the year) DIBELS testing this week!

Have a fantastic week! (Only two more until break! WOW!)

Week 16

Happy belated Thanksgiving! I hope everyone got their turkey and football fix. :) Before school let out for the long weekend, we wrote about things that we are thankful for. I created a tree out of all of our leaves, to serve as a reminder that we do have lots to give thanks for.

Thankfulness leaves and Boxcar writing prompt

It is hard to believe, but we are coming to another end of a quarter! As we dive into the holiday season, there are more sniffy noses and germs present. If anyone can donate some Kleenex/tissues, it would be greatly appreciated by our class! Alright, here's what's coming up this week!

Literature: We will finish Boxcar Children this week!! Be sure to work on those dioramas this week at home, as they will be due December 7th (next Monday), and our Boxcar test will be on the 8th! If anyone needs a shoe box, please let me know. I have several at my house, and a couple more have been donated to our classroom for this purpose. I also have red construction paper if anyone is struggling with a way to cover their shoe box! Please let me know if you need anything!

Spalding: We are back to 30 words, and our Spelling Test is on Friday as normal!

1st 10: picture, pitcher, pitch, money, ready, omit, anyway, eight, breakfast, chance

2nd 10: climb, coffee, color, contains, daily, day, eagle, fancy, fly, forest

3rd 10: freeze, gentle, grow, holes, hotel, iron, living, live, monkey, myself

(Did anyone catch the almost alphabetical order in sets 2 and 3?!)

Grammar: This week we will be learning how to write a formal letter, as well as what goes on the envelope in order to mail it! We will also learn more about direct quotations and review prepositions from last week. 

WWE: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from The Mouse and the Motorcycle

Math: We are working on division this week - sharing, grouping, and word problems. We will also continue to review multiplication, and then we will take a look at the commutative property between multiplication and division. :) Unit 5 chapter 2 Test on Friday!

History: This week is all about Athens! We will learn about the city, democracy, and the children in Athenian times. We will also hold an assembly to see what it would have been like, and we will discuss how this is different from being ruled by a king or queen. 

Science: Insects: Are they friends or foes? We will identify ways in which insects can help people, as well as how some can be harmful. Vocabulary words we will encounter: entomologist (one who studies insects!), extinction, foe, pesticides, and pollinators. 

Poem: The Night before Christmas (Moore)

Idiom: "Easier said than done"

Have a FANTASTIC week!

Week 15

Good evening! We have a very short week ahead. I know I am looking forward to the long holiday weekend, and I'm sure everyone else is as well! :)

Literature: We will read chapter 11 of the Boxcar Children on Monday as a class. I will also send home project directions for our Boxcar diorama that will be due on December 7th. We will not have reading groups on Tuesday, as our Boxcar Feast is during the Literature and Science blocks. Thank you for signing up to bring items for our party! It will be fun!

Spalding: There are no spelling words this week. Instead we will focus on phonogram review, and we will have a graded WPR (written phonogram review).

Writing: We will do a narration exercise and copy work sentence from the story The Borrowers.

Grammar: Our newest focus is prepositions! We will learn a couple different jingles to remember them, including one set to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". :)

Math: We are taking the Unit 5.1 Test on Monday, chapter 1 of multiplication. We will do a fun turkey activity on Tuesday, reviewing all the aspects of multiplication that we have learned so far - repeated addition, arrays, and factors (skip counting).

History: We are learning about the Trojan War and the trick of the Trojan Horse! We will also make our own Trojan horses.

Idiom: "Practice what you preach" - Act the way you tell others to act!

Poem: The Night before Christmas (Clement C. Moore) - Remember, you only need to pick one stanza to memorize!

Have a FANTASTIC week!

Boxcar Feast

Please visit our sign-up genius if you would like to help out with our Boxcar Feast next week! :) It will be from 1:15-2:30 p.m. next Tuesday! We would love to see you there!

Spelling Bee

Please see the message below regarding our Spelling Bee! :)

Dear Archway Parents and Students,

This year Archway Arete will be competing in the Scripps Spelling Bee! We are excited to refine our spelling and public speaking skills in this friendly and fun competition.

The timeline for the spelling bee program is as follows:

Mon. 11/16 – Spelling Bee information distributed to Parents and Students

Tues. 11/17– Optional spelling practice for 1st and 2nd graders in Mr. Posner's room from 3:10-4:10

Tues. 11/24 – Optional spelling practice for 3rd and 4th graders in Mr. Posner's room from 3:10-4:10

Tues. 12/1 – Optional spelling practice for 5th graders in Mr. Posner's room from 3:10-4:10

Friday 12/4 – Each child will take a grade-level qualifier test in their classroom. The test will be a selection of 20-25 words from the challenging Scripps 100 word list for your child’s grade level. The top five scorers in each class will be selected to participate in their oral classroom spelling bee.

12/7-12/10 – Oral classroom Spelling Bees will take place within this week.  The top speller from each classroom will go on to participate in the Archway Arete school-wide spelling bee on 1/6.

Wed. 1/6 – The school-wide spelling bee will be held in the evening at Archway Arete! The top spellers in each class compete in the school-wide bee and only the top speller in each grade will move on to the Great Hearts District bee after winter break.

Tues. 1/26 – The top five spellers from Archway Arete will compete in the Great Hearts District Bee at Archway Veritas! (Details and times will follow.)

While participation in the spelling bee program is voluntary, we encourage every student at Archway Arete to participate in their written and oral classroom spelling bees, as well as the optional spelling practice bees! Here are the word lists that your child will need to study to prepare for this competition: 2015, 2016 Spelling Bee Word Lists. You may also go to Spelling Bee Resources to find additional material and helpful strategies. Students should first learn the 100 study words for their grade level. Please note that the words on this list are quite challenging. The challenge is part of the fun! When your child masters the 100 grade specific words, they are ready to learn the study words for all other grade levels. There are a total of 450 words on the 2016 School Spelling Bee Study List. Finally, when your child masters the study words for grade levels 1-8, they may get a head start on the next level of competition by learning the words on the “Spell It.” This will prepare them for Great Hearts District Bee should they advance to this level of competition.

Please direct questions to Ms. Porcelli and Ms. Smith at MPorcelli@archwayarete.org and hsmith@archwayarete.org. We are delighted to celebrate the English language with your children through the Scripps spelling bee program!

Very truly yours,

Ms. Porcelli and Ms. Smith

Shurley English jingles

For those who want to practice some of the jingles at home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfIxmEqyAbc :)

Week 14

Good evening! I hope everyone has had another great weekend! A couple of quick notes: on Wednesday is our Winter Concert. Attendance is mandatory for this - it will be part of their music grade. :) It will be at the Higley Center for Performing Arts (4132 E. Pecos Rd, Gilbert, AZ 85295), and the concert will begin promptly at 5:30 pm.

We are not supposed to give homework on Wednesday, so the Spalding homework will be optional. We will still practice them in class and again on Thursday, so the test on Friday will cover all 28 words.

Also, we have our Greek play audition tomorrow (Monday) and Tuesday during recess. :)

Here is what we have coming up this week:

Literature: We will continue reading Boxcar Children (chapters 9 and 10) in reading groups and discussing key ideas.

Spalding: 28 new words this week (Test on Friday!). Please practice phonograms 1-70 as well, as we will do a graded WPR next week!

New words: inform, both, heart, month, children, child, build, built, understand, follow, charge, member, case, while, also, return, office, great, Miss, miss, who, died, die, changing, change, few, pleasant, please.

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from "Pilgrim's Progress"

Grammar: We will review all the parts of speech that we've learned so far (noun, verb, adjective, adverb) and create sentence blueprints.

Typing: We will try to begin typing this week!! We will work on our typing skills once a week, but it can be practiced at home as well. More details to come... :)

Math: We will review everything up to this point on Monday, and then test on Tuesday. Then we are jumping into multiplication! We will be creating arrays and practicing our skip counting by 2's, 3's, 4's, and 5's.

History: I am excited to say that we are starting our Ancient Greece unit! We will begin with the geography of Greece and then learn about important Greek gods and goddesses.

Science: We are going to be studying insects this week and getting creative, by designing our own!

Poem: We will finish up poetry recitations since we all didn't recite last week. New poem: The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore - Note: This is a very long poem, so we are only asking that each student memorize one stanza to recite the week of December 14th. Pick your favorite!

Idiom: "Practice what you preach."

I can't wait to see all of you on Wednesday at the concert. Have a great week!

Week 13

First of all, THANK YOU for the birthday goodies!! I love my flowers, and I cannot wait to go buy some more craft supplies! The cake was absolutely delicious, and I know our students loved the cookies. It was a good birthday, and I felt special. :)

We have lots to do in our shortened week. Remember, there is no school on Wednesday, in observance of Veteran's Day!

Literature: We will continue reading Boxcar Children - chapters 7 and 8 - in literature groups.

Spalding: There are only 19 words this week: recover, mountain, speak, past, might, contract, deal, almost, all, brought, bring, less, event, off, of, true, truth, took, again. Spelling Test on Friday! We need to practice our Spalding rules, so I will be creating and sending home some worksheets to practice these.

Writing: We have our narration, copywork, and dictation exercises from the story "101 Dalmatians". We will also be writing Veteran's Day letters on Monday to be delivered to our troops on Tuesday.

Grammar: We are reviewing adverbs and adjectives this week. We will also be learning the 4 types of sentences and the terms "subject" and "predicate".

Math: This week we will be learning about weight! We will be using a balance to weigh different objects, and we will learn the difference between kilogram, gram, pound, and ounce. We will have mini tests - 4.1 A on Thursday and 4.2 A on Friday!

History: We will be learning about Chinese New Year tomorrow and then reviewing our previous Ancient China material. We will test on Friday! Be on the lookout for a study guide on Monday!

Science: I sent home a Life Cycle study guide on Friday. We will review on Tuesday with Life Cycle scoot (game), and then we will take our Life Cycle Test on Thursday!

Idiom: "Practice what you preach".

Poem: Merry Autumn Days recitations! (all week)

Miscellaneous: If your child is interested in run club, signups are here! I am really excited to announce that I will be one of the coaches! I love running and can't wait to share this passion with the children!

Have a great week!

Week 12

Good evening! I can't believe we are already into November! I just sent out an email, but I am planning on having a "Flashlight Monday" tomorrow! They can bring in a flashlight and pillow if they would like, along with their favorite book!

On the agenda:
Literature: We will be reading chapters 5 and 6 in literature groups, answering comprehension questions, and journaling as one of the Alden children.

Spalding: We will be reviewing phonograms each day as part of our homework. New words:
1. happen          16. drill
2. begun            17. army
3. collect           18. pretty
4. file                 19. stole
5. provide          20. income
6. sight              21. bought
7. stood             22. paid
8. fixed              23. pay
9. fix                 24. enter
10. born             25. railroad
11. goes             26. unable
12. does             27. ticket
13. Tuesday       28. account
14. go                 29. driven
15. hold              30. real
Spelling Test on Friday!

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from Nurse Matilda
Note: There is a narration exercise for homework on Friday!

Grammar: We will be learning about the article adjective! There is a new jingle that we will learn, and then we will practice using adjectives on a sentence blueprint. New vocabulary word: massive

Math: We will practice measurement some more this week - we will be comparing meters, yards, and feet, as well as inches versus centimeters. We have two mini tests over length on Tuesday and Wednesday. There will be a cumulative test (chapters 1-3) on Friday!

History: We are learning all about China! This week we will cover a lot of different topics: Confucius and his teachings, ancestor worship, the Great Wall of China, written language, the Silk Road, and Chinese inventions. :) We will be putting these into a lap book, which should turn out really nice!

Science: We will continue our life cycle unit with frogs and butterflies! New vocabulary word: metamorphosis

Idiom: Cold feet

Poem: Merry Autumn Days continued - practice stanza 4! We will recite this poem next week!

Miscellaneous: There is a movie night at 6 pm on this Friday, November 6th. The flier went home in their green folders last week, but there are extras in the front office, should you need one! The movie watching is free, but you can also order pizza and drinks. :)

Have a great week!

Week 11

Good afternoon! We have another exciting week ahead: the Book Fair is taking place all week, and Read-a-thon is on Friday! Parents are allowed to come check out the Book Fair at the following times: 7:30 - 8 am, 11 - 12:30 (lunch), and 2:30 - 4 pm each day. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the Book Fair is supposed to be open an extra hour (until 5 pm). There will be a raffle for students to enter who have purchased at least 4 books. The prizes are really great! They are giving away 5 book baskets (one a day) that are filled with lots of books!

For Read-a-thon, I still need some helpers to come read to our class! You can sign up here to read!

If you have not submitted your costume proposal yet, please do so in the next couple of days or email me who your child will be dressing up as.

Here is what we have coming up this week:

Literature: Boxcar Children - chapter 3 and 4 in literature groups. We will also be acting out chapter 2 from last week and writing an essay on courage.

Spalding: Spelling Test on Friday! 30 words:
1. third        16. letters
2. push        17. orange
3. point       18. pocket
4. written    19. shoes
5. body        20. shoe
6. field         21. stairs
7. belongs    22. stream
8. cheese      23. talks
9. earn          24. tiny
10. edge       25. words
11. feather    26. trust
12. fence      27. extra
13. funny     28. dress
14. going     29. beside
15. honey    30. teach

Grammar: Q&A flows, mover and shaker sentences, learning about adjectives and comparing them to adverbs!

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from Pippi Longstocking

Math: We are starting a new unit (hooray!) on measurement! We will be learning about length this week and practicing with both nonstandard and standard units of measurement (cm, inches, yards, meters). Chapter 1 and 2 tests on length will be on Wednesday and Thursday (respectively)!

History: Ancient India Test on Wednesday! We will review on Monday and send home the India packet to study, in addition to the study guide that went home last Friday. We will start our next unit, Ancient China, on Wednesday.

Science: We our conducting an experiment on Tuesday: germination versus termination. We will continue to discuss the life cycle of a plant this week and have a pumpkin craft on Thursday in the spirit of fall. :)

Poem: Merry Autumn Days by Dickens - practice stanza 3

Idiom/Proverb: Cold feet - loss of nerve or confidence

Looking forward to a great week!

Book Fair & Read-a-thon!

Winter Concert

Please read the following letter from our music teacher regarding the Winter Concert! https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxSuyHM9YtLNUFFRMk13bHpYNDg/view

Week 10

Hello! I hope everyone is enjoying their Monday off! I enjoyed speaking with each of you at conferences last week. We are off to a great start!

Here's what's on the agenda for our four day week:

Literature: We are beginning Literature groups TOMORROW with Boxcar Children! I cannot wait to begin this new book!

Spalding: 19 words this week (Test on Friday!)
Words:
1. dead
2. leave
3. early
4. close
5. close
6. flower
7. flour
8. nothing
9. ground
10. lead
11. led
12. lead
13. such
14. morning
15. however
16. mind
17. shall
18. alone
19. order

Grammar: We will be reviewing the Q&A flow, and then learning the blueprint of a sentence.

Touch Pebbles: "The Lion and the Mouse" - Question to ponder: What is more important - listening or speaking?

Math: We are finishing up subtraction with renaming this week by means of review. We will take our Unit 2 Chapter 5 test on Wednesday and the Unit 1-2 Cumulative test on Friday. Our next unit will be measurement!

History: We are reading some stories from India this week - "A Jataka Tale" and "King Asoka".

Science: Students will learn the life cycle of a plant and be introduced to photosynthesis. We will set up a lima bean experiment tomorrow and do an experiment on germination versus termination on Thursday!

Idiom: "Where there's a will there's a way."

Poem: Merry Autumn Days by Dickens - work on stanza 2

Miscellaneous:
Read-a-Thon
Mark your calendars for our second annual Read-a-thon! This special day will be on Friday, October 30th, and will occur alongside our first on-site book fair! Students may come to school dressed as their favorite classical literary characters, scientists, or historical figures. The goal of this event is to stir a continuous love for reading and an opportunity for lifelong learning. Costumes need not come directly from the grade level curriculum, though they must be classically on-mission. We kindly ask that you send costume ideas to your classroom teacher for approval by Friday, October 23rd. Be sure that costumes allow students to engage in regular school day activities like recess, lunch, and some curricular instruction. The headmasters, teachers, fellow scholars, and students' family members will read to students throughout the day. The Read-a-thon will be a huge celebration of reading for our entire school community!

Book Fair
The Archway Arete book fair will run from Monday, October 26th - Friday, October 30th in the resource room. We look forward to providing this exciting opportunity for students and parents to purchase books for their personal and classroom libraries. The class that purchases the most books from the week-long book fair will be awarded a pizza party. Profits from the book fair will go directly to children's books for the Arete library. The book fair will be open for parents at specific times during the school day, so please plan to attend! There are prizes to be won for participating!

Literature Groups

Good morning!

We are in the midst of conferences, and I am looking forward to meeting with you all. :) Several of you have expressed interest in volunteering, and there are now some more opportunities! Literature groups will begin next week, as we begin reading Boxcar Children. Please use this link to sign up if you are interested! http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0c4eaaac23a3fd0-literature

We still have plenty of room to help with math groups as well! http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0c4eaaac23a3fd0-math

Thank you for all you do! Have a wonderful day. :)

Week 9

Good evening!

I hope everyone had a fun, restful Fall Break! I am looking forward to meeting with each of you this week! Since they are half days this week, please remember that there is no lunch scheduled, so try to pack a hearty snack that will stick with your child.

A couple other quick notes: There will be no math centers on Wednesday since it is a short day. Also, please start bringing in Boxcar Children, as we will begin reading it a week from Tuesday! :)

Here's what we are learning this week!

Spalding: Spelling Test on Friday! (There are only 29 words this week!)
1. indeed       10. meet          20. once
2. four           11. meat          21. one
3. herself       12. another      22. own
4. power        13. tripped      23. before
5. wish           14. trip            24. know
6. because      15. list            25. no
7. cause          16. people      26. were
8. world          17. ever         27. where
9. country       18. held         28. there
                       19. church      29. here

**Please notice the small change to the spelling homework - it asks for two sentences using spelling words (each night)!**

Grammar: Review jingles!

Math: We will be continuing subtraction with renaming (borrowing), and we will be learning what to do when we encounter a problem that involves renaming twice.

History: We are powering full steam ahead in our India unit, and we will learn a little bit about India everyday this week. We will be studying the Indus Valley people, Hinduism, Festival of Lights, and Buddhism.

Idiom/Proverb: "Where there's a will, there's a way" - This fits in nicely with the virtue of perseverance!

Poem: Merry Autumn Days by Charles Dickens (Practice stanza 1 - poetry recitations the week of November 9th)

1st Quarter Grades

Good afternoon!

I have submitted grades for the quarter, and they should be available on Saturday. K-2 uses a checklist, so they are not the typical “grades” that you will later see. (Starting next year it will be on an A, B, C scale.) We look for specific skills, which you will see on the checklist. For the first quarter don’t be alarmed if you see a lot of 2’s. This means that the skill is in development and is being guided by the teacher. (A 3 means that little to no direction is needed, and 4 means that the skill is completely mastered.) We should all be at the 2 level since school has just started and teacher guidance is needed. Embrace the 2’s! If you have any questions, please jot them down and bring them to your conference. I look forward to discussing your child’s progress with you! I hope you are having a wonderful break. J

A quick note: If you have not done so yet, our next book to bring to school is Boxcar Children! Thanks!

Conferences

Good morning,

Thank you so much to everyone who helped out at our Charlotte's Web Festival on Thursday! I hope your child had fun! I got several cute pictures and will be posting them soon! Here's a fun picture of the pie eating contest:

Many of you have already signed up for conferences via my link in the email last week, but I will re-post it here!

I also have links for specials conferences should you be interested. These are completely optional, but it is a way to get to know your child's French, P.E, and music teacher. :)

P.E.- http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0c4dafad29a6f49-quarter2
French - http://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0c4bafa72aa2f85-quarter
Music - http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0c4ea8a92aa7fe3-quarter1

There is not one for Art, as our new art teacher will begin with the second quarter.

Have a wonderful Fall Break, and I look forward to seeing you soon! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. I will be at school working on Monday and Tuesday, but after that I will check my email periodically. :)

Charlotte's Web Festival Tomorrow!

Please send your child with a hat tomorrow and sunscreen already applied! It is going to be hot out! (It’s supposed to be sunny and 106 degrees.) We will have water bottles for them outside. :) Tomorrow they do need to wear their uniforms; however, they may want to wear their athletic shoes that they wear for P.E. since there will be a couple of games. Just a reminder that it is a full day tomorrow, and we have a regular lunch schedule in the MPR after the festival. Looking forward to it! I will see many of you in the morning!

Island Project Pictures!

As promised... 

Behold the wonderful 
ISLAND PROJECTS! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Week 8

Good evening!

As we draw to a close in quarter 1, I just want to thank you for a good start! I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know your children, and I look forward to watching them continue to grow this year. Thank you to those of you who have helped with math centers (especially Madison's mom!) and to those of you who have expressed interest in volunteering. We will be starting our Literature groups on October 20th with Boxcar Children, and I will need more volunteers!

I received the anonymous homework survey results and would like to be as accommodating as possible. Some people marked that homework is taking 75-90 minutes! Please reach out to me and let me know how I can help to bring this number down. I do realize that extracurricular activities are a big part of childhood, and second grade homework should only take 30-45 minutes.

I'm hoping that the Spalding homework is getting a little easier to understand for those of you who are new to Great Hearts (and that the informational night on Thursday helped). I will be reaching out to my new families regarding Spalding.

Literature: We are finishing up Charlotte's Web! We will be decorating a medal for Wilbur, as well as writing a eulogy for Charlotte. On Thursday is our Charlotte's Web festival! We will be setting up the football field to resemble a fair, similar to the one Wilbur goes to in the book. A big thank you in advance to those of you who have agreed to help out. We cannot wait for this event! The children are going to have so much fun!

Spalding: Since Friday begins Fall Break, there are only 20 words this week. I also want to take a WPR (written phonogram review) for a grade this week. Please practice phonograms 31-60. I will break them up and quiz 31-45 on Wednesday and 46-60 on Thursday.

For Wednesday: ou, oo, ch, ar, ay, ai, oy, oi, er, ir, ur, wor, ear, ng, ea

For Thursday: aw, au, or, ck, wh, ed, ew, ui, oa, gu, ph, ough, oe, ey, igh

New words: (Test on Thursday)
1. above      11. right
2. express   12. write
3. turn         13. wrote
4. lesson      14. date
5. half          15. road
6. father       16. rode
7. anything   17. ride
8. table         18. March
9. high          19. march
10. June        20. next

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from The Jungle Book
Grammar: We're learning about adverbs! (If you haven't already, be sure to ask your child about the noun and verb jingles that we learned last week!)

Math: We have our chapter 4 (Unit 2) math test on Tuesday! (addition with renaming) After this, we are continuing our renaming process, but this week we are subtracting, rather than adding. We will be learning how to line the problems up vertically and borrow.

History: This week begins our Ancient India unit. We will begin with an introduction and look at its geography. Last year we learned about monotheistic religions, specifically Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. As we study Ancient India, we will get into a new culture and learn about the polytheistic religions of Hinduism and Buddhism. Please be prepared to continue these conversations at home, as we will redirect questions of faith to be answered by parents. :)

Science: We are beginning a new unit on the life cycle! This week will mainly focus on the word "cycle" and how nature works. We will discuss the age old question: What came first, the chicken or the egg?

Poetry: We have our poetry recitations this week for Something Told the Wild Geese by Rachel Field.

Miscellaneous: Please be on the look out for a Sign-up Genius coming later this week! I will be sending out an invitation for parent-teacher conference sign-ups. They will be held October 13-16 in the afternoons/evenings. I look forward to discussing quarter 1 checklists and your childrens' progress with each of you! :)

Spalding/Singapore Night

Just a reminder that tomorrow is Spalding/Singapore Night! - 6 pm in the gym :)

Week 7

Wow! How time flies! I cannot believe we are already in week 7. Here we go:

Literature: Charlotte's Web continued - chapters 17, 18, and 19. We will be practicing our letter writing skills this week. We will start off the week by choosing a character from the book and trying to write from their perspective. This could be a human, like Fern or Avery, or one of the animals, such as Wilbur, Charlotte, Templeton, etc. :)

Spalding: We're back to 30 words this week! Test on Friday! Words:
1. began          11. watch           22. grant
2. begin           12. dash             23. soap
3. beginning    13. fell               24. news
4. able              14. fight            25. new
5. gone             15. buy              26. small
6. go                 16. by                27. smaller
7. done             17. stopping       28. smallest
8. do                 18. stop              29. war
9. suit               19. walk             30. summer
10. track           20. talk
                         21. chalk

Writing: narration, copy work, dictation exercises from "Ginger Pye"
Grammar: nouns and verbs; 4 easy steps to classifying sentences

Math: Addition within 1000 with renaming - dice and card games :)

History: Japan continued - History Test on Friday! (Study Guide going home Monday and Review going home on Wednesday!)

Science: Water Cycle continued - We'll be discussing the differences between groundwater and run off, learning some new vocabulary, and labeling a diagram of the cycle.

Poem: Something Told the Wild Geese (continued) - stanza 4 - recitations next week!
Idiom: "Keep your fingers crossed"

Note: We have a half day on Friday, September 25th!

Have a great week!!

Week 6

Good evening,

First of all, I wanted to say Wow! I loved seeing all the beautiful and creative Island Projects! Everyone worked so hard, and we had fun sharing them with the class. :) I took pictures of all the projects and am trying to find a way to display them on the blog! I will see if I can figure that out soon!

We have another 4 day week ahead! (Don't forget!! School Pictures are on TUESDAY!)

Literature: Charlotte's Web continued - chapters 14, 15, and 16. Homework is to read Monday through Wednesday and complete pages 1-3 in the reflection log. Since there is no school on Friday, please bring back books on Thursday! (Some of us have not been turning in our leveled readers. I cannot issue another book until I have received the previous one. Thank you!)

Spalding: We only have 20 words again this week: (Test on Thursday!)
1. peach     11. catch
2. pole       12. catcher
3. queen     13. kitchen
4. rope       14. butcher
5. season    15. black
6. sign        16. warm
7. space      17. unless
8. wagon    18. clothing
9. wheat      19. clothes
10. window  20. clothe

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from the poem "My Shadow"
Grammar: punctuation and capitalization rules review; Chapter 1 Test on Wednesday

Math: We're still in Unit 2, continuing with addition and subtraction. We have been practicing problems with seeing it both lined up vertically, as well as horizontally. Unit 2 Chapter 3 (Subtraction without Renaming) Test on Tuesday! (The multiple choice practice version will go home as homework on Monday.)

History: We will begin our short unit on Japan. This week focuses mainly on the geography, culture, and school life in Japan. On Wednesday we will compare and contrast Japanese schools to our own, and then we will set out to clean up our school! Japanese children have to do chores at school as part of their daily routine. This involves cleaning up the classrooms, hallways, bathrooms, and yard! Our clean up won't be as extensive as this, but we will set out to clean up the playground and our own classroom. :)

Science: We are learning about the water cycle! We will do an experiment involving the sun and shade, and we will also talk about the different types of clouds.

Poem: Something told the Wild Geese - work on memorizing stanza 3!
Idiom: "Don't cry over spilled milk."

Have a great week!

Week 5

Happy Labor Day! I hope everyone has had a chance to relax! (I have been catching up on some reading and doing a little hiking!) 

Here's what we have on the agenda:

Literature: Charlotte's Web continued - We have started planning our Charlotte's Web carnival; be on the look out for a Sign-up Genius (coming soon!) for ways to volunteer! There are going to be tons of booths to run and it will be a lot of fun! (It will be on October 1st from 9-11:30.)

Spalding: Phonograms to practice at home: numbers 60 - 70; new words: (Spelling Test on Friday!)

1. stamp       11. cloud

2. light         12. draw

3. coming     13. drink

4. come        14. garden

5. night        15. goose

6. pass          16. hopping

7. shut          17. hop

8. easy          18. knife

9. ease          19. mouth

10. bone       20. oak

(Notice that there are only 20 words this week!)

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from "Misty of Chincoteague"

Grammar: punctuation rules

Math: Addition and Subtraction within 1000 without renaming; Unit 2 Test on Thursday (Unit 2 Ch 1 Test B will be done as homework on Tuesday, and Unit 2 Ch 2 Test B will be done in one of the math groups on Wednesday.)

History: We will be presenting our Island Projects this week (beginning tomorrow!) We will also review the geography of the Americas with a trivia game and take a short quiz on Friday. 

Science: We are concluding our Seasons unit. We will kick off our Water Cycle unit with a water experiment on Thursday. Students will learn the following terms: condensation, water vapor, and pollutants. :)

Poem: Something Told the Wild Geese (Field) - Begin memorizing stanzas 1 and 2

Idiom: "Don't cry over spilled milk."

Thanks! Have a great evening!

Spalding/Singapore Night

Due to a scheduling conflict, Spalding/Singapore Night has been postponed. Our Spalding "guru" is looking at other dates. We will let you know as soon as the new date has been released! Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Leveled Readers

Good morning,

Leveled readers went home yesterday, and I just wanted to touch base about them. They may seem a little simple, but remember, they are to be read aloud for inflections and fluency! If there is a question mark at the end of the sentence, make sure your child's voice is going up at the end of the phrase. If there is a comma, tell them to put a slight pause. We want them to read with expression! :) (Chapter books will go home after Winter Break, so those are coming!) Just as a reminder, as part of the 20 minutes, there is a reading reflection log that needs to be filled out as well. There are 4 pages, so 1 page can be done each day (Monday-Thursday). The whole log will be turned in along with the book on Fridays, and new books will go home on Mondays. Please let me know if your child's book is significantly too easy or hard. Thank you!

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Math Groups

Good evening,

If you are interested in helping with math groups, please click here to sign up!

Thanks! :)

Week 4!

Good evening,

I'm sitting here listening to the rain...what a lovely sound! I hope you all are safely inside your homes right now!

We had fun yesterday -- We played place value "scoot" in math, had our first estimation jar winner (Congrats, Olivia!), played dodge-ball in P.E., and water painted scenes from Charlotte's Web. A special thanks to Hadi and his mom for giving us special treats too! It was a day packed full of fun activities!

We have lots coming up this next week. Special note: There will be Galileo testing on Wednesday and Thursday after lunch, so make sure to pack a hearty lunch and get a good night's sleep the night before! We also have our first school-wide assembly on Friday morning.

Literature: We are continuing Charlotte's Web - we will be drawing cartoons of the exploding egg scene from chapter 10, creating a web of friendship, and coming up with virtuous character spider maps. We will also have our first Flashlight Friday on Friday!! Feel free to send in a flashlight and pillow with your child on Friday. We will be reading independently "in the dark". :)

Reading homework: I will be sending home leveled readers this week! Please have your child fill out one page of their reading log each night and turn the whole log in on Friday with their leveled reader. We will always pass out new books on Monday (or whenever we come back from a weekend if there is a holiday).

Spelling: Spelling Test on Friday! Words:
1. move     11. clean        21. these
2. delay     12. spell         22. those
3. pound    13. poor         23. club
4. behind   14. finish       24. seen
5. around   15. hurt         25. see
6. burn       16. maybe     26. felt
7. camp      17. across     27. full
8. bear        18. tonight    28. fail
9. bare        19. tenth       29. setting
10. clear     20. sir           30. set

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from the story "Doctor Doolittle"

Grammar: focus - capitalization

Math: This week we will be working with addition and subtraction of one digit and two digit numbers with no renaming. We are working on mental math (no using fingers!). On Wednesday we will do a practice run of math centers. We will go over how math centers work, basic rules, etc. Math centers will begin on September 9th. I'll be creating a Sign-up Genius and sending it out this week! Math tutoring will begin this week and is by invite only. If you have not heard from me and feel that your child needs math tutoring, please email me and we can chat. :)

History: We are continuing Geography of the Americas but heading south - to South America!

Science: Seasons - Spring and Summer

Poem: We will be reciting Bed in Summer this week! (I will also be sending home the new poem to start looking at: Something Told the Wild Geese by Rachel Lyman Field - to be recited the week of Sept. 28th)

Have a wonderful rest of your weekend! :)

Coffee Shop Conversations

If you would like to join Mr. Gillingham for coffee and conversation about Archway Arete, I invite you to sign up here. :) It will take place Sept. 17th at 8 am. Space is limited so sign up soon!

Week 3

Good evening!

Here's what's happening this week:

Literature: We're continuing Charlotte's Web and working in our literature packet.
Spalding: OPR (oral phonogram review) and WPR (written phonogram review) daily - we're practicing phonograms 37-51 this week. Spelling Test on Friday! 
New words:
1. first          12. wife         21. better
2. sent          13. state         22. water
3. cent          14. July         23. round
4. mile          15. head        24. cost
5. seem         16. story       25. price
6. even          17. open       26. become
7. without     18. short       27. class
8. afternoon   19. lady       28. horse
9. Friday       20. reach      29. care
10. hour                             30. try
11. our

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises
Grammar: analogies and vocabulary work in our journals
Idiom of the Week: "Back to the drawing board" - When a plan doesn't work out as you thought it would, you need to start over from the beginning.
Poem: Bed in Summer (Stevenson)- continued - work on stanza 3!
Math: Review unit 1- Unit 1 Cumulative Test on Wednesday! Begin next unit - part/whole addition and subtraction
History: We are starting our Geography of the Americas unit!
Science: Seasons continued - this week: Fall/Autumn :)

Quick note: DIBELS testing will occur this week. After this I will have a good indicator of reading levels. We will send home leveled readers next week!

Dear Archway Families,

Click here to read the exciting opportunity that has brought us one step closer to expanding our playground and building an outdoor classroom! We hope you will accept this challenge. Thank you for your contributions toward making our campus a beautiful place for learning and playing.

Appreciatively,

The Archway Arete Team

Week 2

Good afternoon!

Here's what's on the agenda for this week:

Literature: We are continuing Charlotte's Web. We will introduce new vocabulary on Monday and then continue reading chapters 4-6 Tuesday-Thursday. Reading homework is still to read for 20 minutes each night! I will be sending home leveled readers in another week. For now, read something fun at home!

Spalding: We will begin Spelling words this week! If not do not have your pink Spalding book at school yet, please bring it in tomorrow!! (The school is also selling them in the front office until they run out!) We will introduce 10 words each day (Monday-Wednesday), and then practice all 30 of them on Thursday. These will be tested on Friday. I also like to give bonus words that are related to what we are studying in history or science. Another component of my spelling tests is a dictation part, where I will give 1 or 2 sentences using several of the spelling words from the week. For this first week, I will only do 1 sentence, but they need to include all of the components of a sentence: capitalization, proper spacing, and punctuation!

Words for the week:
1. became            11. glass              21. would    (hint: "oh you lucky duck" for order)
2. brother             12. party              22. could
3. rain                  13. upon              23. should
4. keep                 14. two                24. any
5. start                  15. twin               25. many
6. mail                  16. twice             26. city
7. male                 17. twelve           27. only
8. female              18. twenty           28. where
9. eye                    19. between        29. week
10. I                      20. they               30. weak

WWE (Writing With Ease): narration exercises, copy work, and dictation

Grammar: We will begin a new curriculum, Shurley English, this week! We will be learning about what makes up a good sentence and learning the differences between antonyms and synonyms.

Touch Pebbles: Our first experience with Touch Pebbles was a good one! On Friday we sat in a circle and learned how a Socratic seminar works. We set up some ground rules for running the discussion (ie. not interrupting), and it went pretty well! Our next Touch Pebbles text is called "The Judge," a tale from West Africa.

Idiom of the Week: "Don't judge a book by its cover!" (continued)

Poem: Bed in Summer (continued - this week: memorize stanza 2)

Math: We are working on place value with hundreds and comparing numbers within 1000. We will be reviewing the terms "greater than" and "less than". We have a little Math Test on Tuesday! The "Test 1B" will be sent home as homework on Monday as practice and to study.

History: We will finish up our continent/ocean posters from Friday. Then we will discuss the differences between maps and globes and talk about when one might be more useful than another. We will also learn about landforms and how they are represented on maps!

Science: We are beginning a unit on seasons!

NOTE: We have CURRICULUM NIGHT this week! This will be an opportunity to learn more about our curriculum we have in place (Shurley Grammar, Bauer's Writing With Ease, Core Knowledge, Spalding, Singapore, etc.). For K-2, it will take place this Thursday, August 20th. However, it is a parents only event. Below is the schedule:

Curriculum Night Schedule

6:00-6:25	Welcome and opening remarks by Mr. Gillingham and Ms. Pantalena
	A-L	M-Z
6:30-7:10	Homeroom	Specials in MPR
7:15-7:55	Specials in MPR	Homeroom

Hope to see you all there!

Have a wonderful week!! :)

Woo! We made it through our first week!

Dear Families of 2A,

Congratulations! We made it through our first week! Despite rain and heat advisory days, we powered on! We are enjoying getting to know one another and had a great first week back in school. :) I'm writing to you today in search of classroom parents. See below if you are interested... (Check back tomorrow for information for the upcoming week!)

We are seeking two parents to fill the “Classroom Parent” position! This is a yearlong commitment that includes tasks such as organizing class events, working directly with the Parent Service Organization, and being a liaison between the classroom teachers and families. If you are interested, please email me directly by Friday, August 24th. Remember, this will not be your only opportunity to serve our class! Volunteer opportunities will be presented regularly throughout the school year.

Many thanks,

Mrs. Ellingson and Ms. Carnahan

Week 1

Good evening! Tomorrow's the day! We have a lot of exciting things planned:

Literature: We will be starting Charlotte's Web this week, so please bring in your books as soon as possible! I will place my book under the document camera for students to follow along for this first week. :)

Spalding: We are reviewing proper pencil grip, letter formation, and phonograms this week. There will be no spelling words, so there is no spelling test this week. However, please practice all phonograms at home!

Writing with Ease: narration exercises from The Owl and the Grasshopper and The Fox and the Stork

Touch Pebbles: In second grade, we begin "Touch Pebbles," where we listen to a story and then have a short Socratic discussion over it. These will take place every Friday. This Friday we will have our first one, and the text title is called "A Different Kind of Class".

Idiom/Proverb: You can't judge a book by its cover.

Poem: Bed in Summer by Robert Louis Stevenson
Students will memorize one stanza each week and will recite the poem during the week of August 31st. This poem will go home tomorrow (it's on a blue piece of paper). Please work on memorizing a little bit of it each night!

Math: We will begin with a Singapore pretest tomorrow and Tuesday. Starting on Wednesday we will review addition and subtraction facts within 10, read and write two digit numbers, relate two-digit numbers to place value, and group objects in tens and ones. We will also practice counting on, backwards, and skip counting.

History: In History we are starting our unit on maps. We will be discussing where we live - address, city, state, country, continent, planet - and sorting according to size. We will also start studying continents and oceans and work in small groups on a collage.

Science: In Science we are reviewing the scientific method and applying it to an experiment!

One last note: Please pack a healthy snack and water bottle each day, and make sure that backpacks and lunch boxes are free of pop culture! Thank you! Looking forward to a wonderful year!! :)

Welcome!

Welcome to 2A!

Check back soon for more information! :)