*Please send a reusable water bottle to school with your child every day.* 

Please familiarize yourself with our school's handbook, especially our uniform policy. All 2nd graders are expected to wear a belt with pants/shorts- The belts must be brown, black, or navy blue solid and must be worn completely through the belt loops. 

What to Expect in Second Grade

2025-2026

Homework

Language Arts-  Students will bring their reading book home biweekly on Wednesdays.  Please read our main story with your child. They will have an ELA activity sheet to complete weekly. The activity sheet will cover topics we’re focusing on for the week and help prepare them for the assessment on Friday. The textbook & homework activity sheet may be returned on either Thursday or Friday. 

* Students are expected to complete 15 minutes of required reading Monday-Thursday. A monthly reading log will be sent home in the back of the green folder to help keep track of the time. The reading log must have a parent signature & be turned in at the end of the month. 

Math-  Students will be assigned one sheet of math homework M-TH. One side consists of the daily concept I have checked over & the other side will be their homework. 

Grades

Chapter assessments will be given in Language Arts (reading & spelling), Religion, Science, Math, and Social Studies. Study guides will be sent home 2 days prior to tests. All assessments and other graded work will be sent home in the white home-school envelope on Fridays or Mondays.  Reading exams could become online exams for my class. If so, I will provide information on how to access reading test grades. 

The spelling test will be given weekly on Fridays before lunch.   The reading comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar assessment will be given biweekly on Fridays. Please try  not to schedule any appointments during that time. 

Quizzes  

Math- A weekly grade will be taken on an addition/subtraction fact sheet. 

Social Studies & Science- Students will be given multiple quizzes throughout the unit we’re studying. 

Spelling Words

Students will be introduced to new spelling words every Monday with a pretest.  Spelling tests will be given on Friday. If your child spells all of the words on the pretest correctly they will be given the challenge list to study for the week.  **It is your discretion which list your child receives each week. 

Birthdays

We will celebrate birthdays with a simple birthday treat. You are welcome to send something in for 16 students. Cookie cakes must be precut. 

Snack

Our snack time is around 9:00 a.m. Suggestions: granola bars, Goldfish Crackers, fruit, etc.  I will happily accept pre-packaged snacks for the entire class. :)  

*Please send a reusable water bottle to school with your child every day.* 

Conferences

If you ever feel the need to schedule a conference please do not hesitate to email me or call the school to leave a message for me.  I will be more than happy to meet with you.  I feel that a strong parent/teacher partnership is important to the success of every student.

Email: kcarter@stjosephschoolbg.org

Phone: 842-1235

Class Dojo

Students may receive a Dojo when following rules and correctly modeling procedures. When a child is not following rules/procedures, he or she will receive a Nojo. Students will have the opportunity to use their Dojo points for a variety of rewards. The students will have the opportunity to spend their points every Friday during Fun Friday.

10 points- sticker sheet/candy                                                   

20 points- Draw on the board

30 points- stinky feet day (no shoes in the classroom) or read a book to the other class

40 points- treasure chest 

50 points- Ms. Carter's lunch buddy and pick 2 friends

60 points- Fluffy Friend for the day

70 points- Sit in teacher chair

80 Points- Show and tell 3 items

90 Points-Extra Technology time

100 points- Drink Machine

Behavior Communication Procedure

To help students monitor and improve their behavior throughout the school day, I will use a discreet behavior tracking system.

• If a student needs a reminder about their behavior, their name will be written discreetly on a whiteboard as a visual reminder.

• If the behavior continues, the student may receive a check next to their name.

• The student receives an opportunity to reset and make better choices after each reminder.

• Only after receiving a second check will the student be asked to complete a behavior reflection form.

• The behavior reflection form will provide the student with an opportunity to reflect on what happened, what choices were made, and how the situation could be handled differently.

• The completed form will then be sent home for a parent/guardian signature as a way to communicate about the behavior and encourage collaboration between home and school.

• The tracking system will reset after lunch, giving students a fresh start for the afternoon.

The goal of this system is not to punish students, but to provide discreet reminders, encourage self-reflection, and keep families informed when additional support is needed.

Field Trips

We will take several field trips this year.  Please check with the office to make sure you have completed ALL necessary paperwork in order to volunteer in our classroom/drive on field trips. Contact Jenny Thomas (jthomas@stjosephschoolbg.org) with questions. Background checks & Safe Environment Certification are good for 5 years.

All drivers must complete the Be Smart/Drive Safe one time training video.  The 12 minute video can be accessed on the Owensboro.cmgconnect.org website. Once logged in, scroll down to the Be Smart/Drive Safe training video. Even if you have driven on field trips in the past, please make sure that you are compliant with this training.

Kentucky state law (HB 315) requires booster seats to be used in motor vehicles by children who are less than eight years old and are between 40 and 57 inches in height when transported in a motor vehicle designed to carry ten or fewer passengers. If Kindergarten through 2nd grade classes take field trips using private cars and the students are required to use a booster seat, the parent must provide their child’s booster seat for the field trip.

Tentative Field Trip Schedule

* Fall Semester- Performance at SKyPAC Percs of Percussion (Thursday, September 24) & Charlotte's Web (Wednesday or Thursday October 21 or 22) & Lost River Cave (Thursday, November 5)

* Spring Semester- Spring field trip to Meltdown ice cream/National Corvette Museum (TBD) & Prayer Day at Gasper River (April 30). Performance at SKyPAC The Seussical (April)

***I will send a weekly newsletter on Connect on Fridays or Mondays with the learning agenda and other important information. 

Thank you so much for your support and dedication to our school.  I am blessed to have the opportunity to work with your child this year!