Mrs. Thomas'
2nd Grade Class
May 1, 2023
In Our Classroom We Are All STARS!
Important Class Information
A lot of information has been coming home so here are links to everything just in case it has gotten lost in the shuffle. Click to see each document.
NEW 5-DAY SPECIALS ROTATION SCHEDULE
Important Dates:
May 4th - May the 4th Be with You - SCA Spirit Day
May 5th - NO SCHOOL (Teacher PLC Day)
May 29th - NO SCHOOL Holiday
Classroom Wish List
Here is a link to our Classroom Amazon Wish List. If you would like to help add some items to our classroom this year, we would be forever grateful! (You can click the link or scan the QR code.) THANK YOU IN ADVANCE for all of your support and help in making this year a huge success. The donations that have been received so far have been appreciated more than you can imagine.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1QET1CBJ0VMF1?ref_=wl_share
Fun Classroom Days Coming Up
Seesaw - We LOVE TO READ Challenge
(March 27th - May 31st)
May the 4th Be With You (SCA School Spirit Day)
May 4th
Famous American Project Virtual Presentations
Presentations are Virtual - Date TBD
2nd Grade Birthday Day (Date TBD)
***Each student is asked to send in a plain white t-shirt by May 17th.
Date will be announced soon
End of the Year Countdown - Last 15 Days
There will be something special each day, look for more details and a SignUpGenius soon! :)
Messages from the Office
*End of the School Year Date Changes
Wednesday, June 7 and Thursday, June 8 will change from school days to teacher workdays. The last school day for students will be Tuesday, June 6.
*Yearbook Sales
You can still order your yearbook. The price is $20 and you can send in a check or cash.
*Vacations:
If you plan on taking a family trip that is 5 days or more, you must fill out a vacation request form. You can request a form from the office or your child's teacher.
*Inspire Award
After many years of celebrating our teachers through the Inspire Teacher Award, a decision has been made to open this award up to any staff member who is making a difference. This award aims to recognize RCPS employees who go above and beyond in their classrooms and buildings. Please click this link to nominate a RCPS staff member who is making a difference: nomination form link
*A Message from Nurse Michele:
We have had many students out sick over the past few weeks. It would be great for parents to familiarize themselves with the RCPS Health Policy - especially when it comes to students returning to school after an illness. Click this link for more medical info: RCPS Health Policy 2022-2023
*School Closing and Delay Notifications
If you want to receive text messages on school closings, delays and general information, please text the letter Y or the word YES to the short code number 67587 from each cell phone on which you want to receive SMS text messages.
*Box Tops for Education
A great way to give back to our school is to download the Box Tops for Education app. You select our school by name or zip (22846). You simply scan your receipt and we get credit for items you've purchased. No cutting box tops, no licking stickers :) and you don't have to remember to send them to school. Easy peasy!
*Families - Mrs. Harter, the Library Teacher, shares a newsletter each month that we would love you to read and enjoy. There is also a new video on how to access our school library catalog from any internet device and how to place holds. For more information, go to this link: PKVES-Our Catalog Site & Placing holds - Watch Video
*Calling all moms, dads and guardians! If you are interested in becoming a member of our Peak Patrol, please click this link: Peak Patrol Flyer 2022/2023 Patrolling has begun!
*School doors open at 8 am and begins promptly at 8:20. School dismisses at 3:00.
*Transportation notes/changes can be sent in with your child to give to their teacher. Please include the students first and last name on the note. If you have a last minute change, please call the office BEFORE 1:00.
*School Calendar: RCPS 2022-2023 School Calendar
*Attendance: If you have an absent/tardy student to report you may email our attendance clerk at pkvesattendance@rockingham.k12.va.us. Please include your child's name (first AND last name), teacher's name and the reason they are absent/tardy.
Parent Volunteers -
January - May
I absolutely LOVE having parent volunteers in the classroom. Here is the link to sign up! We can't wait to have you join us! :)
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0C4FA9AB2FA1FD0-20222023
Language Arts
Last year we began a new journey to help students learn to read and spell based on the Science of Reading and we saw huge success. Peak View and RCPS has embraced the Science of Reading using a systematic approach through the use of LETRS as our guide. In class we will continue to learn about sounds and after some fall assessments your child will have both whole group and small group reading instruction. Differentiation will occur both in whole group and small groups to help meet the needs of all students. Please be sure to check out the LETRS for Parents information below.
LETRS for Parents
Click this link to learn more about LETRS and to get some great ideas for helping your child practice reading at home.
https://sites.google.com/rockingham.k12.va.us/letrs-for-parents/home
Current Units in the Classroom:
Whole Group Phonics Lesson Feature: This week we will be reviewing all past learned phonics features and learning about vowel teams. Please also continue to review sounds for automaticity at home as well. Here is a great resource for hearing the sounds correctly and this can help you encourage your child to say them correctly at home. https://phonograms.logicofenglish.com/chart?fbclid=IwAR3J-wO2zY6AF3YgoOBAMajBbUv7If1yqF7yd-bm4XbVgfmDRmm-Cpy-luk
Reading/Writing - The class will continue to work on Characters, Setting, Problem and Solution during read alouds. During writing we are working to write complete sentences on a given topic with proper capitalization and punctuation. Our goal is to write at least 4-5 complete sentences on given topics. We are working to write paragraphs together, edit our own writing and more.
Math - This week we are starting our fraction unit. Students will learn that fractions represent equal size parts of a whole. Students will learn to identify and label fractions (parts) of a shape as well as fractions of a set of objects.
Unit - We finished up our unit on Famous Americans and Americans symbols last week. This week students will select their Famous American for their project and presentation. We will begin working on writing our reports and presentations and making items to share as well. This is a very fun project for everyone.
Homework
Please note that in 2nd grade students are asked to read for 15 minutes each night and then to also spend 5 minutes reviewing and practicing some basic High Frequency Words and Heart Words.
For reading, I would ask that you and your child read together for 15 minutes. Feel free to take turns with pages, books, or whatever works best for you as long as your child gets practice reading outloud to you. If you need some appropriately leveled reading materials, please do not hesitate to let me know. Some materials including a Fluency Notebook will begin coming home daily soon. Once this begins coming home, please ensure that it comes to and from school daily so that new material can be added to it.
For High Frequency Words and Heart Words, here are some ideas of ways to practice your child's words together.
It is important to note that Sight Words are words that are instantly recognized and identified without much effort. As students become better readers, many words become "Sight Words" for them. High Frequency Words are words that are most commonly used in the English Language. Many High Frequency Words are decodable and can be "sounded out" using regular phonics concepts. Heart Words are High Frequency Words that have a "tricky part" that cannot be decoded so students must learn these words by heart. Some words can begin as Heart Words until your child learns a certain phonics rule and then it becomes decodable for them.
The goal is for your child to be able to spell and read these words consistently. A list of High Frequency Words and Heart Words will be sent home this week (Top 100 Words) so that you have some ideas of words to review and practice. Please keep this list of words in a safe place for reference and practice all year.
Thank you for your time and support with homework this year.
Seesaw
I am excited to have you all connected to Seesaw again this year. Your child will be given assignments on a daily basis in Seesaw and you will be able to see what they are working on in class. I will also send pictures and videos of our class activities throughout the year. There is also a message option where you can send me direct messages and I will send announcements and information via Seesaw as well when needed.
Seesaw is also a great way for you to give feedback to your child. Please feel free to write comments to your child or record a voice message when they send you items. You can also click the heart to show that you like something. This feedback really inspires your child and keeps them pushing to be the best that they can be each day.
If you are not connected to Seesaw or need any help with how it works, please do not hesitate to reach out.
