Writing Like Scientists

Is there another Einstein in our future? This group of second graders seems like a promising bunch. Our new Writing Workshop unit - Lab Reports and Science Books - has had the boys and girls acting, thinking, and writing like scientists this week.

Writing times have been a whirlwind of activity. We began the unit with the question: Will a toy car go farther off a ramp on carpet or bare floor? We formed a hypothesis. Then, the class designed procedures, conducted multiple trials, and recorded results. Finally, we put all this in writing.

The very next day, we were back at it, adding to our procedures sections to make them so precise that our work could be understood and replicated by someone else... someone like a first-grade buddy. We invited Mrs. Hogue's class to visit and read our procedures. Their misunderstandings showed us flaws in our work that we could fix. The first-graders got to try the experiment for themselves. The data they generated gave us more to add to our results pages.

As we moved on, the boys and girls had the chance to revise the toy car experiment and conduct others, changing just one variable. Science lab/writing partners asked questions like: Would a marble go farther off the ramp than a car? How about a ping-pong ball? What if we changed the angle of the ramp? Would a smaller car go farther than the first one we tried? Our experiments with force and motion were all done in the service of writing. The goals is to write detailed and organized informational reports.

If I began this unit with some trepidation because of the potential for chaos in the classroom, it quickly faded. Seeing the children's level of engagement and their willingness to write for an authentic purpose has made a fan of me. A little chaos has been well worth it!

In Reading Workshop, we've gone back to the basics of reading - accuracy, fluency, comprehension, and stamina. And we're asking: What new strategies can we bring to bear in each of these areas as we tackle longer and more challenging books?

In math, the boys and girls took their Unit 4 test on Wednesday. Let me assure you that this was a challenging unit for all of second grade. Most of the children in our class made huge gains from the start of the unit to the end, and though I did not see a lot of 100%s on the test, I am proud of them. We will continue to practice the subtraction and word problem skills covered in this unit. I know that for many these are still somewhat tentative. Our new unit is a short one. The children will learn to tell time in five-minute increments and they will interpret and create various graphs.

It was off to Africa in Social Studies this week. The boys and girls took virtual tours of the Sahara Desert, the pyramids, Mt. Kilimanjaro and Victoria Falls.

I have been working hard on report cards, which will be sent home on Monday, and to get ready for parent-teacher conferences, which begin on Wednesday. The report cards will be our reference points for conferences. I look forward to meeting with all of you to review your child's progress so far and to look at goals for the third trimester. Thank you so much for meeting with me.

Mark Your Calendars:

Mon., Mar. 6 - Report cards are sent home.

Wed., Mar. 8 - First day for parent-teacher conferences (3:00-6:30 PM)

Tues., Mar. 14 - Assembly - Irish dancers (10:30-11:00 AM)

Thurs., Mar. 16 - Parent-teacher conferences (4:30-8:00 PM)

Wed., Mar. 22 - Early Release Day for students; parent-teacher conferences (3:00-6:30 PM)

Fri., Mar. 24 - Last day before Spring Break