Second Grade at Shaker Lane - Room 202

For your information, here are the third trimester benchmarks for second graders. These align to the common core state standards and are taken into consideration for determining student progress in the spring trimester. 3rd Trimester Second Grade Benchmarks LANGUAGE ARTS Identify the main topic of a multiparagraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text and the main purpose of a text. Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text. Know and use various text features to locate key facts or information in a text. Explain how specific images contribute to and clarify a text. Describe how reasons support specific points the author makes in a text. Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic. Know spelling-sound correspondences for additional common vowel teams. Decode regularly spelled two-syllable ...

Just  a reminder, this placement letter went home April 23rd and is due on Friday. Please reread it and not that Mrs. Kane specifies due to the complexity of the process, Shaker Lane does not allow parent requests for individual teachers. You can answer the questions on the back side to provide more information to assist us in the placement process. Thank you. 

Hi there! For those of you who are new to using Scholastic.com or those who want to learn more about navigating their website to find affordable books at your child's reading level or books that match their interests, check out this short  six minute video! Thank you.

You might find that your second grade child is expanding his or her understanding of language this year. One of the things we work on is starting to explore shades of meaning. The CCSS for second grade (common core state standards) include the following: "Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings". Specifically,  we start to explore differences, some more subtle than others, between words*. Some of the words we look at include fall and collapse and cry and sob. We have a number of fun language arts centers but once in a while you may see it come up for extra practice on a morning work page or on something we send home. Therefore, I wanted to be sure you knew why were working on this concept. * exact standard wording is:  " CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.2.5.B Distinguish shades of meaning among closely related verbs (e.g.,  toss, throw, hurl ) and closely related adjectives (e.g.,  thin, slender, skinny, scrawny )."

Many of us talked at conferences about "beyond the text" comprehension questions. This is a big focus right now in class. I thought I would post a list of some general questions you can ask your child while reading together that would fall in this category. That way, you can use them if you see fit! The list below is split into fiction and non fiction questions. Some may appear in both lists. FICTION: How does this story make you feel? What genre is the book? How do you know? Is this book a good example this genre? Why? Can you think of another book this reminds you of in this genre? How was this book like other books you have read in this genre? What is your favorite illustration? Why did you choose it? Why do you think the author chose this style of illustration? What is the author's message in this book? Do you think the author was trying to teach a lesson? What was it? Why do you think the author wrote this text? What are some interesting words, phra...

We are going to be working on a graphing project! We have started it in class and will be sending home the data sheet. Students will complete a bar graph, pictograph, and line plot, and answer some questions about their data and graphs. The pages will then be cut out and glued on posterboard or on large construction paper (your child will need 2-4 sheets and can bring them home from school if they like). If your child needs  a review of how to make a line plot, which is the newest type of graph we have learned, watch this video I made! Hope it helps and have them ask me any questions they have.

Video games have been popular with children for many decades. In the last few years, more and more young children ages 7 and 8 have been participating in online gaming such as Minecraft and Roblox. Multiplayer online games, whether played on a device, computer or through gaming consoles like xBoxes or Nintendo, open worlds where students can interact with friends and friends' characters but children  might come across people they do not know in this online world, and receive friend requests from both people they know and strangers. As a parent, you may be looking for resources to educate yourself about the online gaming world and also how to talk to your children about safety and privacy online. I found some great resources. Play it Safe: An Introductory Guide to Gaming for  Parents This detailed posts answers FAQs about online gaming and provides helpful videos with tips for parents to help their children stay safe. Also, it provides information on parental controls on g...