Warm Hearts

I promised you and the boys and girls that our Secret Snowflake activity would be more than just a holiday gift exchange. I didn't know how much more.

This week, as part of Secret Snowflake, the class has been writing notes of appreciation and encouragement to each other. Any child can write to any other child in the class, not just his or her Secret Snowflake (since, of course, that would give away our secrets). Our small classroom mailbox has been filled each morning and afternoon with heart-shaped notes for me to deliver. The messages have been meaningful and sincere. Here's a quick sampling:

• You are a sweet friend and always make me laugh.
• You did a great job reading the Morning Message today.
• Thank you for helping me think of an idea for my writing.
• I'm glad you were my math partner today.
• I like how you always listen.
• Thank you for being a good friend. You make me feel good.

And here's a favorite that I received: Thank you for all you do for us... especially Secret Snowflake.

Who knew that something as simple as this would cause such excitement. The show of kindness and the shared enthusiasm has brought our class closer and truly warmed our hearts in this week of single-digit temperatures. Maybe sometimes in our busy lives we need little rituals like writing notes and having secret pals to inspire us to really notice what others mean to us and to take the time to let them know.

The boys and girls have been plenty busy with other writing, too. They have each undertaken one final nonfiction book to show all that they've learned about teaching an audience. The twist is that they are trying new forms of information books. Some children are writing how-to books, others are writing true-or-false books, and still others are writing narrative stories that teach.

Understanding some of the ways that readers respond to nonfiction has been our focus in reading. We've considered how readers figure out the main ideas, ask questions, and have big feelings. "Recess at 20 Below," a book about schoolchildren in Alaska, proved a great choice for practicing these skills together. Then the children practiced with "text sets" of their own. Text sets are multiple books on the same topic. Gathering information and responding across multiple sources is the final step in our nonfiction unit.

This week's math lessons featured more about shapes and measurement. The boys and girls learned about sides and angles,  used centimeter rulers to measure the length of objects around the room, and practiced finding the perimeter of various shapes.

In closing, I send my gratitude to all of you at this special time of year. I can't fill your mailboxes with heart-shaped notes, but  I truly thank you for all you do to support me and to help your children. I look forward to the holidays with my family, but your families will be in my thoughts, too. I feel fortunate to have all of you in my life.

Mark Your Calendars:

Mon., Dec. 19 - I will be out of the classroom for curriculum work with the other second-grade teachers. Mrs. Maier will be the sub.

Tues., Dec. 20 - School Board recognition. Our class will be recognized for being the top donors in our Stormonth food drive. We've combined some student writing and worked together to create a short book about the experience, which we will present to the board. Thanks to all those families who are willing to bring their children back to school at 6 PM for the short program.

Wed., Dec. 21 - Secret Snowflake gift exchange and holiday celebration. (Please send wrapped gifts to school on Mon., Dec. 19, or Tues., Dec. 20.)

Fri., Dec. 23 - First day of winter break

Tues., Jan. 3 - School resumes

Writing About Reading

This week saw the boys and girls writing about reading more than ever before. They read from a variety of nonfiction sources - magazines, an online children's encyclopedia, books - and tried to distill the main ideas of these texts. They learned to do more than simply lift a line or two; they put their thoughts into their own words and then put those words to paper.

Asking them to do this work is a bit like throwing them into the deep water. It's tough. But being able to think and especially to write about text in this way has become the hallmark of proficient second-grade reading. Once children are fluent readers, they are mostly assessed on their ability to think deeply about what they read and to respond in writing. It's a skill that takes a lot of practice and children will get that this year and beyond. Bit by bit, writing will become an important way for them to process ideas and information from their reading and to share them with others.

In math this week, the boys and girls took the Unit 2 test and we began a new unit on measurement and geometry. For many children, this is the first time they are using rulers to measure in centimeters and inches, and it's exciting. In first grade, they used objects such as blocks or paper clips placed end to end as measuring tools. The ruler that your child brought home yesterday can be thought of as a homework ruler. We have other rulers to use at school. Also in math, we've begun using Moby Max. This online program begins with a placement test. Then, based on test results, it targets areas of student need. Math concepts are broken into small, achievable skills. Short teaching videos address the skills and practice problems with immediate feedback follow. So far, the boys and girls seem to like the program. We are using it for 15- to 20-minute sessions a couple of times a week. Instructions for how to get onto the program at home will be sent once we're sure we've ironed out any bugs.

Science lessons about the uses of earth materials continued with the boys and girls making beads from clay. With some tips and supplies from Mrs. Jubelirer, our class fired the beads we made in the school kiln and painted them. The process was lots of fun and the boys and girls seemed very proud of what they'd done. As we move on in science, we'll be making "homemade soil" with humus, pebbles and sand, and looking at how water in its various states affects the land.

Finally, please take a look at a letter that I am sending home today about a Secret Snowflake activity in our classroom. It's a gift exchange - but more, I hope. Today, each child secretly chose the name of another student who becomes his or her Secret Snowflake. Over the next week and a half, the boys and girls should make a special effort to be kind and respectful to their secret friends without spilling the beans. On Wed., Dec. 21 - the first official day of winter - Secret Snowflakes will be revealed and small gifts will be given. The purpose of the activity is to build friendships, instill a spirit of generosity and kindness, and add joy to our days.

Mark Your Calendars:

Fri., Dec. 9 - Report cards are sent home

Wed., Dec. 14 - Early release day for students

Thurs., Dec. 21 - Secret Snowflake gift exchange

Fri., Dec. 23 - First day of Winter Break

Tues., Jan. 3 - School resumes

Making Progress

In just a week, I will be putting first-trimester report cards into your child's binder to bring home to you. I am working hard to prepare these and as I do I wanted to share a few thoughts with you.

In the fall of 2015, Stormonth began using a new standards-based report card. The criteria listed on these report cards reflect the state academic standards. The standards detail what students are expected to learn and do by the end of each grade. Our report card criteria, too, now reflect what is expected by the end of a year. Our grades - Beginning, Developing, Secure, and Exceeds - refer to student progress toward year-end goals.

Taking this long view of a child's academic progress requires a significant shift in thinking - for teachers and for parents. Traditional report cards indicate what a student has mastered by a specific point in time; the new report cards look at whether the student is on track to meet broader goals that generally encompass a whole year's worth of learning.

As I grade students this trimester, I am assigning Ds for Developing to most students in most areas. To me this signifies that a student is working successfully, growing stronger, and heading toward meeting the second-grade standards. He or she still has some learning left to do, as would be expected one third of the way through the year. While it's possible that a student meets some end-of-the-year standards ahead of schedule and is marked S for Secure, it's the exception.

I was part of a Stormonth teacher team that created our new report cards. The process we used to match standards to report card criteria was at times painstaking and always very thoughtful. After using the report cards for a year, our team met again this fall and made changes. The report card you see next week will feature a tighter format and clearer language than last year's. I hope that  the grades you'll see together with my comments give you a good understanding of what your child is learning and doing in second grade.

Now here's an update on our week in the classroom:

Money was our focus in math. Even though the coins we used were fake, the real-world applications for counting combinations of dimes, nickels, and pennies and for adding these amounts made the lessons highly motivating. Most children head into our Unit 2 test next week with these skills solidly in place.

In Reading Workshop this week, we began the challenging work of distinguishing the main idea from the interesting details in nonfiction texts. Nonfiction is packed with information. Some of the information coalesces around a big idea; some of it is unrelated or only tangentially related to that big idea.

These details, however, often capture readers' attention by providing interesting, even quirky, information about the topic. We are working to sift the important ideas from the interesting details - but also to relish those quirky details. We are using magazine articles initially because their length makes this work more manageable. We started with a fascinating Time for Kids piece about Helen Keller. In Writing Workshop this week, all of the boys and girls started writing new books. Our lessons included identifying your audience, writing strong introductions, and writing memorable conclusions. We looked again to our mentor author Melissa Stewart. Her books give us examples of how to do these things well.

Finally, you may have heard that one of our classroom windows blew out on a windy night two weeks ago. I arrived at school to do some work on a Sunday to find the gaping hole. By early Monday morning, thankfully, the hole was covered. Earlier this week, the plywood was removed and our new window was installed - to the great delight of all.

Mark Your Calendars:

Fri., Dec. 9 - Report cards are sent home

Wed., Dec. 14 - Early release day for students

Fri., Dec. 23 - First day of Winter Break

Tues., Jan. 3 - School resumes

Being Strategic

The theme connecting our work in the classroom this week has been strategies.

In math, the boys and girls continued to practice strategies for two-digit addition. Most are making the shift from drawings to using numeric strategies that are far more efficient. In reading, they are learning strategies for tackling the topic-specific words that can sometimes be stumbling blocks in non-fiction books. They've tried anticipating words that match a particular topic so as not to be surprised by them. They've used features like text boxes, labels and lines, and glossaries to help with new vocabulary, and they've used context clues.

As writers, the boys and girls have studied the strategies used by Melissa Stewart, author of more than 150 non-fiction books for kids. Stewart's strategies include asking questions to make readers wonder, including details and comparisons to help them understand, and adding fun facts to amuse and amaze them.

All of these strategies are important in and of themselves, but the big idea here, I think, is that learners can choose from an array of strategies and carry them out to achieve goals. Even at second grade, a lot of what we learn and do isn't black and white. There isn't just one right way. Some strategies fit some purposes better than others. Some strategies fit some learners better than others. Sometimes we try one strategy and fail, but there's almost always another way of looking at things; something else to try.

In this vein, I am trying some new strategies in the hopes of streamlining and strengthening a few home/ school routines. Being new to the grade has meant having to develop a lot of new routines. Some have worked just fine; others need tweaking. Here's an update:

Spelling - Early release days and other interruptions have affected our Word Wall spelling schedule. This has been confusing and I apologize. From now on, I will send our five new high-frequency spelling words home every Monday. The words will come home on a more clearly marked blue half sheet to distinguish them from test sheets. The spelling test will always be on Friday and scored tests will be sent home on Monday. If it's a short week, like next week, there will be no new words and we will use the time to review.

Words Their Way - Besides Word Wall words, the boys and girls are learning to recognize common word patterns as a spelling aid. The Words Their Way program used in second grade at Stormonth has students study lists of words with particular spelling features. Beginning after Thanksgiving break, I will send these word lists home. Your child should be quite familiar with how to cut and sort the words according to their patterns. Students are not tested on all of the words, but a sampling of ten. At-school practice of these words follows a five-day cycle. Expect that your child will be tested five school days after his or her word list comes home. Test days vary depending on the spelling group your child is a part of.

Reading - You may have noticed that I've created blue bookmarks that say "I read this book with Mrs. Armstrong." This is to distinguish a practiced book from an unfamiliar one. Please be sure to send the bookmark back along with the book. Whether it's a book from me or something that your child has selected from our classroom library, please read with your child or monitor his or her reading time. Your child should do at least 20 minutes of at-home reading every day. Your initials on your child's reading log confirm this. I check reading logs at least once a week.

Scholastic News - Look for an edition of this kids' news magazine to come home every Monday. I encourage you to make re-reading and discussing it part of your child's reading homework.

If you have suggestions for changes in other home/school routines or questions, please let me know.

One more thing worth a mention is our science unit: Pebbles, Silt, and Soil. Our  latest lessons have been about the uses of rocks. A hike around our school property offered lots of examples, from brick walls and walkways, to drainage ditches, light posts, and our asphalt playground. The boys and girls got a chance to make something of their own from a form of rock - sand. We mixed the sand with cornstarch and water to create some very imaginative sand sculptures.

Finally, a huge thank-you for the many, many contributions to our Stormonth food drive. We sorted our items and counted them by groups, then added the totals using our two-digit addition strategies. Our total was 260 - the highest in the school. What a wonderful lesson in generosity!

Mark Your Calendars:

Fri., Nov. 18 - Food drive ends; total collected announced at an all-school assembly

Tues., Nov. 22 - Stormonth concerts, 10 AM and 2 PM

Wed., Nov. 23 - Early release day for students

Thurs., Nov. 24, and Fri., Nov. 25 - Happy Thanksgiving!

Fri., Dec. 9 - Report cards are sent home

Wed., Dec. 14 - Early release day for students

Fri., Dec. 23 - First day of Winter Break

Tues., Jan. 3 - School resumes

The Gift of Knowledge

A book wrapped in colorful paper and tied with a polka-dot bow made a nice visual for the message I delivered to the boys and girls about nonfiction reading this week: Every new book is a gift of knowledge. There is always something inside to learn. The very best of these gifts are the ones that surprise us, because when we are surprised by a book, it's usually a sign that we are learning a lot. We're outgrowing old ideas and gaining new information and new ways of thinking. So be glad for surprises!

Among our surprises in books this week:

• Dolphins give birth to live babies - tail first!
• The path to becoming a knight began when a boy was just seven years old.
• About 3 out of 10 immigrants died on their way to America in the late 1800s, but still thousands came.
• The Titanic might not have sunk if the captain had paid attention to the warnings he was sent.
• An orphaned rhino can survive, but it needs a surrogate mom and about 5 gallons of milk a day!

Ironically, as reading lessons focused on surprises, one of this week's key writing lessons was about knowing what's expected. The boys and girls received their checklists for informational writing. The checklist outlines what student writing is expected to include - from an introduction that grabs readers' interest, to a body filled details, descriptions, topic-specific words, and expert tips, to a satisfying conclusion. Sharing these expectations early in a unit helps children take measure of where they're at in their writing and how far they have to go. Checklists help them set specific goals (Yes! We're still setting goals!) and identify the steps they need to reach them.

In math, our focus has been on double-digit addition. At first, we conceptualized this with drawings of sticks (for tens) and circles (for ones) as shown on the workbook page at left above. But now, the boys and girls are moving away from drawings to numeric representations as shown on the right page. They are learning strategies like "show all totals" whereby they total all the tens, then all the ones, and then combine. Another strategy is the more traditional method of "showing a new group below" (or above), which is what you may know as "carrying a ten." The purpose of teaching multiple strategies is to instill in students the notion that there is more than one way to find a solution. They are encouraged to find the approach that works best for them.

Finally, several parents asked this week whether there had been a lot of classroom talk about the presidential election results. Certainly, it was a topic that came up, though we did not formally discuss it. When asked about our new president, I didn't share my politics, but I did share my philosophy. I told the boys and girls that the president is an important person, but that each of us is important, too. We have laws to obey, rights to respect, ideals to uphold. We have jobs to do to make our country strong - even 7- and 8-years olds. We are the people and the people make the country.

Mark Your Calendars:

Mon., Nov. 14 - Stormonth's annual food drive continues. Please be generous!

Fri., Nov. 18 - Food drive ends; total collected announced at an all-school assembly

Tues., Nov. 22 - Stormonth concerts, 10 AM and 2 PM

Wed., Nov. 23 - Early release day for students

Thurs., Nov. 24, and Fri., Nov. 25 - Happy Thanksgiving!

Diving into Nonfiction

What do a US map, a diagram of the solar system, a model of an eyeball, a wanted poster for the assassin of Abraham Lincoln, and a guide to an African animal safari have to do with our new reading unit? Plenty! I introduced nonfiction work this week with these artifacts and dozens more and asked the boys and girls to study them closely. Their job was to notice details and then put these details together in their minds to create ideas.

One child studied foreign currencies and made interesting realizations about the images different countries featured on their bills. Another checked out a diagram of beavers at work to discover that these animals are at home both in water and on land. And yet another made theories about why the weather page of a newspaper would include the times of the sunrise and sunset. The purpose of using artifacts like these rather than books was to

provoke a lot of ideas quickly and to dramatize the need for a high ratio between thinking and reading.  As we now turn to books, the expectation is set for the children to alternate between reading and thinking. Gathering information is the easy part when it comes to nonfiction. The trickier - and most essential - part is making sense of the information. The boys and girls will be asking themselves not only "What does this book say?" but "Why is this important?" and "What do I think about this?"

At the same time the children are learning about reading nonfiction, we've launched into nonfiction writing. Our focus is to teach others what we know. So rather than researching topics, we are relying on our own expertise. Some children are writing about sports they know or instruments they play; others are writing about cookie baking and potion making. The start of a new unit calls for clearing out our Writing Workshop folders. The personal narrative stories that the boys and girls wrote for the last two months are coming home to you today. Please take note especially of the story your child chose as a favorite. We edited these with care, decorated covers for them, and shared them with our third-grade neighbors this week.

In math, we've marveled at the fact that the people who invented our system of numbers did it with just ten digits, and that any number - no matter how large - can be created by placing these digits in ways that reflect their value. That's what "place value" is all about. In the early lessons of our new math unit called "Addition to 200," the children reviewed their understanding of tens and ones in our base-ten number system and extended it to hundreds. They are using models and drawings that illustrate the concept of making new tens or new hundreds and then connecting these to equations. If you have not already done so, please review, sign, and return the Unit 1 math test that your child brought home this week.

While I took a hiatus from blog writing for parent-teacher conferences, we celebrated Halloween in the classroom with poems, riddles, stories, math games, and a party. We helped our first-grade buddies follow a set of written directions to make paper jack-o-lanterns. A big thank you to Adream Blair for leading a fun craft activity and to Laurie Woods, Jenni O'Brien, and the Castro family for supplying treats for our party. And thanks to all those who attended our costume parade.

Finally, thank you for coming to conferences. It is always a pleasure for me to meet with you and talk. I learn so much! Your insights help me to better understand your child. I hope that the information I shared gave you a picture of your child's life at school.

Mark Your Calendars:

Mon., Nov. 7 - Stormonth's annual food drive begins

Wed., Nov. 9 - Early release day for students

Fri., Nov. 18 - Food drive ends

Tues., Nov. 22 - Stormonth concerts, 10 AM and 2 PM

Wed., Nov. 23 - Early release day for students

Thurs., Nov. 24, and Fri., Nov. 25 - Happy Thanksgiving!

Visiting a Land of Stories

The highlight of our short week was without a doubt our field trip to Bookworm Gardens. The two-acre site in Sheboygan, is divided into six areas. Each one is beautifully landscaped and decorated around themes from classic children's literature. At the area called the barnyard, for instance, there are hints of "Charlotte's Web" and "Peter Rabbit." Part of the woodlands area is reminiscent of "Little House in the Big Woods." Another part recalls "Goldilocks and Three Bears," including Papa Bear's too-big chair. (Though it seemed just right for some second graders.) The pond area, otherwise known as "McElligott's Pool," is stocked with dozens of colorful fish to feed.

Bookworm Gardens invites children into these settings and then gives them free rein. To say that the displays are interactive is an understatement. Children can climb, crawl, collect, create - and most of all imagine. As a first-time visitor, I was surprised that there wasn't more actual reading going on. Was I disappointed? Not at all. This is a special place where children bring what they know about classic books and become part of these beloved stories.

Back in the classroom this week, we did some close reading of two books by Jane Yolen, the Caldecott-winning "Owl Moon" and the lesser known but equally touching "Elsie's Bird." We considered Yolen's intentions as she wrote each of these books. We examined the ways that she made us react and the writing techniques she used to prompt those reactions. Throughout the year, we'll study authors like Yolen and when we do our reading and writing lessons align so closely it's hard to tell where one ends and the other begins. 

Also, this week, we solved word problems galore, including tricky problems with too much or too little information. We had our first science lesson about pebbles, sand, and silt. The boys and girls observed three kinds of rocks. By rubbing them together, they began to explore the concept of weathering. Finally, we met with our buddy class, the first graders from Mrs. Hogue's room. For our first meeting, the second graders demonstrated how to shake hands properly when introduced. Then each of them worked with a younger student to create a special buddy handshake that they will use to greet each other from now on.

Next Thursday, Oct. 20, Stormonth holds its first round of parent-teacher conferences. These continue on Wed., Oct. 26, and Thurs., Oct. 27. I look forward to meeting with all of you. Since I'll be busy with conferences on the next two Thursday evenings when I usually write the blog posts, I will wait until the first week of November for the next update.

Mark Your Calendars:

Wed. Oct. 19 - Fire Safety program

Thurs., Oct. 20, Wed., Oct. 26, and Thurs., Oct. 27 - Parent-Teacher Conferences. I look forward to meeting with you. 

Fri., Oct. 28 - Stormonth Halloween Parade and our class Halloween party (new date). I am still hoping to find a volunteer or two willing to help plan the party or supply treats. Please let me know if you can help.

Setting Goals

One of the goals I've set for myself this year is to help students set goals for themselves. If this sounds a bit convoluted, let me explain. I see goal-setting as a way for the boys and girls to begin to take charge of their own learning; to be reflective about what they've already done and to challenge themselves to do even better. Taking this kind of ownership for learning, even in small ways, means that children are likely to be more motivated and successful. With practice, goal-setting becomes an important habit of the mind and heart.

Since the beginning of the school year, our class has talked about goals. We discussed how goals need to be specific and realistic, and how they need to have a deadline. The first goals we set were class, or community, goals for reading and writing stamina. Being able to read and write in quiet, focused ways is important, we agreed, because this creates an environment where we can practice our skills.

We reviewed our stamina goals this week. The boys and girls were tough on themselves and decided that they hadn't quite met our goals of staying on-task for 30 minutes a day for each subject. So we revised our Sept. 30th deadlines, discussed some new strategies, and are trying again.

The children had better luck meeting their individual goals. For these, they chose particular ways in which

they hoped to improve their own reading and writing. I suggested the kinds of goals they might consider, but I held back from laying out specific goals for students to tackle. I wanted this to come from them. I was impressed by how accurately students saw their strengths and needs, how willing they were to take risks, and then how honest they were in assessing whether they'd achieved their goals. Once goals are reached (with some evidence to prove it), we post them on large bulletin boards in our classroom. Then, new goals are set. "It's a cycle," one student said. "We'll just keep going and going." Exactly!

Here are examples of second-round, individual reading and writing goals. Notice the common language. I think this is helping children to understand achievement as a consequence of their own actions and to express this clearly.

• I hope to bring my stories to life so I will add thinking and feeling to my next three stories.
• I hope to read bigger words so I will figure them out chunk by chunk until the end of October.
• I hope to stay focused on my books so I will move away from my friends until November 1.
• I hope to get better at comprehension so I will ask myself questions about my next two books.
• I hope to read longer books so I will try a chapter book series by Oct. 14.
• I hope to write about my reading so I will write down my ideas about my next five books.

In other news from the classroom this week, we continued to solve word problems in math, wrote small moment stories about everything from lost teeth to lost cats, played with word patterns, read from our book boxes, visited the book fair, smiled for our class picture, and put the finishing touches on our hallway display about lessons we learned from Leo Lionni books (check it out more closely when you come for conferences).

Mark Your Calendars:

Tues., Oct. 11 - Second-grade field trip to Bookworm Gardens, 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM. Thank you to Mrs. Woods, Mrs. Langerman, and Mrs. Duback for joining us as chaperones.

Wed., Oct. 12 - No school

Wed. Oct. 19 - Fire Safety program

Thurs., Oct. 20, Wed., Oct. 26, and Thurs., Oct. 27 - Parent-Teacher Conferences. I look forward to meeting with you. 

Mon., Oct. 31 - Class Halloween Party. If you would be willing to plan or help plan a small class party (about 30 minutes of fun activities and a treat), please let me know.