Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays from our second grade class! I hope you are all having a fabulous vacation!

Here are some pictures from our holiday party last Thursday!

Friendship book swap

Mrs. Pike being brave at the reindeer toss station!

The kids made reindeer ornaments that glow

Making reindeer hats

Mary and her beautiful candy cane dress!

Kids were very excited about their new books from the book swap! Thank you parents!

December Celebrations

December was such an exciting month in second grade. We have a poem in the classroom called 'December Celebrations' that we have been reading:

"Every year at just this time, in cold and dark December,

families around the world all gather to remember.

With presents and with parties, with feasting and with fun,

customs and traditions for people old and young.

So every year, around the world in all lands and nations,

people of all ages love December Celebrations!"

Last week, Mrs. Eisen, a teaching assistant in our classroom, came in to read an animal fantasy book, Hoppy Hanukkah. She shared with us some fun food and game traditions her family plays when they celebrate this holiday. She brought in dreidels for each child and starbursts that they earned for prizes. Thank you Mrs. Eisen for teaching us about your favorite December celebration!

Elf Store Visit

We had a great time on Monday visiting the Grade Two Elf Holiday Store to decorate our elves. Now, we will use this character to help formulate a creative writing story in Writer's Workshop.

Today in Writer's Workshop, we brainstormed ideas for our setting, characters, magic power, problem and solution. More updates coming soon as we craft some creative stories!

Science: Erosion and Weathering Investigations

In science, we began our study of the many ways in which Earth's surface is constantly changing. Last week, students took part in two science investigations on weathering and erosion. First, we simulated the effects of weathering by shaking bits of chalk in small jars filled with pebbles and then water. The kids had a lot of fun working together to carry out this experiment and draw pictures of their observations.

Later in the week we studied the effects of erosion by gently blowing through a straw against a mound of sand. We each got to blow one time, then each blew ten times. Ask your child how their sand mound changed and what they learned!