Second Grade
by Mrs. Behrns and Mrs. Byrkit
November 20, 2008
Our language arts focus for this month has been on evaluating statements as being statements of fact or statements of opinion. Everyone practiced writing statements of fact based on personal experiences or after researching the statement in another book or on the computer. We learned key words to look for in statements in order to judge a statement as being an opinion. This practice then allowed us to determine which statements were fact and which were opinions.
Much of math class this month was devoted to the practice of
solving double digit math problems using algorythms. This "partial
sums" algorythm is a new strategy to add to those already practiced
earlier in the year. The students then have many options for
problem solving since they can use the strategy that works best for
them. We also worked on positive and negative number locations on a
thermometer and number line.
Each second grade classroom voted during the presidential election
week. Both classrooms selected Barak Obama as the next president.
However, the whole school voted and the candidates tied. Some of
the second graders went with their parents to the poles and got to
see first hand how the election process works.
Mrs. Brykit's science unit this month was on endangered and extinct
animals. The students learned about many animals and the reasons
that they were endangered or extinct. Each student was able to
determine what caused many animals to become extinct and what we
can do to help prevent more from becoming endangered.
Mrs. Behrns' class studied the properties of magnets by learning
about the various types of magnets and the locations of the poles
on each one. Experiments were tried to determine the strength of
magnets in various settings. Students also shared ideas where
magnets are used in our everyday world.
