Reading

Welcome to our first unit of study, “Habitats Around the World.”

This year, our second grade students will build literacy and language

skills by participating in ten cross-disciplinary units of study in our

Reader’s Workshop. Each three-week unit will focus on one topic, and

the topics will range from economics to earth science, history and

culture to themes in literature, and much more. As students read

poems, stories, plays, and informational articles, they will strengthen

their reading and writing skills and strategies, participate in

meaningful collaborative conversations, and make connections to

their other content area studies. And we look forward to sharing

their progress with you!

In “Plants and Animals in Their Habitats,” we will be learning about

how living things survive. As we read different kinds of texts, both

fiction and nonfiction, we’ll be looking at habitats around the world.

Your child will read about coral reefs, grasslands and the tropics. In

addition, your child will be introduced to animals and their habitats

in animal fantasy stories.

In each case, we will be focusing on the essential question: How

do living things get what they need to survive? It’s a fascinating

question that scientists have been exploring for ages, and I hope it

will generate some interesting discussions at home.

I look forward to working together as partners this year. Should you

have any questions about our reading program or about your child’s

progress, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Welcome to our next unit of study, “Characters Learn and Grow.”

Just as in real life, characters in literature are faced with challenges

they must overcome. In fact, that’s the theme of our second unit. As

we read tales and poems from around the world, we’ll be meeting

characters from classic tales, inclduing King Midas from the Greek

myth and Yeh-Shen, the heroine of the first “Cinderella”-type tale,

from ancient China.

The characters in our selections need to overcome some hardship,

sometimes brought on themselves, and sometimes by others. In

each, they must find a way to solve their problems. Sometimes, as

in the tale of Yeh-Shen, another character, a talking goldfish, comes

to her rescue. However, more often than not the characters learn

valuable lessons. For example, the milkmaid, from an Aesop’s fable,

and a boy from today competing in a running race, learn about the

downside of daydreaming.

Welcome to our next unit of study, “Government Working for Us.”

In our third unit, we’ll be learning about the role that government

plays in our lives. For example, police officers and firefighters help

keep us safe, and local workers help keep parks beautiful and clean.

Your child will also be learning about laws—what they are, why

they matter, and what happens when we break them. The selections

include a variety of genres, such as poetry, historical fiction, and an

interview along with informational social studies texts.

It’s an interesting and informative unit. I hope it will generate some

engaging discussions at home as you and your child work on some of

the following activities together.

In life as in literature, a story can change dramatically depending

on who’s telling it. That’s the main idea behind our fourth unit of

study, “Different Characters, Different Points of View.” For example,

in “The Blind Men and the Elephant,” five blind men each examine an

elephant to learn more about it. The man who touches the elephant’s

trunk decides it’s just like a snake, whereas the man who touches

its tail concludes an elephant is like a rope. As the rajah explains

afterwards, each man sees only part of the elephant. To get the

whole picture, they have to put the pieces together.

As we read our selections, your child will be asked to compare the

points of view of different characters. We will also be studying

how characters change their points of view as a story progresses.

I hope you’ll agree that the skills we’re learning will not only help

your child become a better reader but also provide him or her with

valuable insights into the world around us.

Welcome to our next unit of study, “Technology and Invention.”

In this unit, we’ll be reading about famous inventors like Thomas

Alva Edison and George Washington Carver, as well as lesser-known

figures like Mary Anderson, who invented the first windshield wiper,

and George de Mestrel, the inventor of hook-and-loop fasteners. We

will also read how robots hlep children who cannot attend school

feel like they are with their peers.

As we read our selections, we will be studying the impact of

different inventions, and we’ll also be looking at how various

inventions helped people solve problems. It’s an exciting unit that

will hopefully make inventions—and inventors—come alive for our

children, and help them look at the world about them with fresh

eyes. Maybe your child will become the next inventor to solve a

problem through technology!

Welcome to our sixth unit of study, “Tales That Teach Us.” In this unit,

we’ll be reading tales from around the world and discussing the

lessons each tale teaches us. Some tales, like the fairy tale “Hansel

and Gretel,” might be familiar to your child, but others he or she

will likely be reading for the first time. Selections include a range

of folktales, including pourquoi tales (“how and why”) and trickster

tales. As we compare and contrast characters and stories, we’ll be

exploring themes of honesty, kindness, greed, and truth. Be sure to

ask your child about Pedro Urdemalas, a favorite crafty character

from Latin American folklore.

“Tales That Teach Us” is a rich and interesting unit, and I hope it will

provoke many thoughtful conversations in school and at home.

Welcome to our next unit of study, “Pioneers in Flight.”

In this unit, we’ll be learning about historical figures like Bessie

Coleman, the first African-American woman to get a pilot’s license.

We will be discussing how historians study primary sources like

photographs, diaries, and artifacts to learn about the past. And just

like historians, we will be studying the information we gather and

drawing conclusions.

“Pioneers in Flight” is a unit that will capture your child’s imagination

and also introduce your child to concepts and events in our past. I’m

certain you’ll enjoy continuing the conversation with your child.

Welcome to our next unit of study, “Wind and Water Shape the Land.”

In this unit, we’ll be studying earth science and forces of nature. We

will learn new concepts like erosion and weathering. We’ll be reading

about tornados, mudslides and hurricanes as we learn about the

effects wind and water have on mountains, shorelines, and the world

around us. As we read and look at pictures of the Grand Canyon,

we’ll see “a sculpture that has been carved over five million years

by the mighty forces of nature.”

“Wind and Water Shape the Land” is an informative and interesting

unit, and I hope you’ll find time to continue our discussions at

home.

Welcome to our ninth unit of study, “Making, Buying, and Selling.”

In this unit, your child will be introduced to elementary concepts in

economics. For example, we’ll be learning about the steps involved

in producing everyday objects like a baseball bat or pizza box. We’ll

also read about kids who go into business, and get introduced to the

notion of bartering. In addition, your child will meet two silly animals

characters who go into business and end up eating away most of

their profits. Our selections include procedural texts, informational

social studies texts and stories. “Making, Buying, and Selling” is

an interesting unit about a subject close to our lives, and I hope it

sparks some lively discussions at home.

Welcome to our next unit of study, “Changing Matter.”

In “Changing Matter,” your child will be introduced to concepts in

physical science like the fact that everything in the world is made

up of matter and takes the form of liquid, solid, or gas. Furthermore,

matter has properties such as shape and size and those properties

can change. Your child will be looking at the world not just as a

scientist, but as an artist. We’ll read about a sand sculpture contest

and about the man who carved a huge memorial of the 19th Century

Native American leader Crazy Horse into a mountainside in South

Dakota. Your child will read a proceudral text and have a chance to

practice origami, the Japanese art of paper folding.

I hope you’ll agree that this cross-disciplinary unit is an exciting way

to end the year. Should you have any questions about our reading

program or about your child’s progress, please don’t hesitate to

contact me.

Thank you for partnering with me this year!