Learning To Go Mr. Avery's Class on the Web 

Thanks, everyone, for the great turnout Thursday night! I especially appreciate your generosity of spirit as you worked cooperatively to wrestle with some of this year’s big ideas in learning. You demonstrated our core values well and provided excellent role models for your kids. They were beaming when I recounted our work together–they’re proud of you, too!

 We now have enough chaperones for our field trip. Thanks to all who offered. I’ll send home a page with our itinerary, expectations, and tips to chaperones next Tuesday. Chaperones should plan to arrive at school no later than 8:45 on the morning of the 16th.

Fall Festival is coming on Friday, October 30! As an alternative to Halloween, Floral classrooms engage in fun activities centered around autumn, culminating in an all-school celebration at day’s end. I need 4 parents to come in that morning from 9:30-11:00 to run activities which will be set up for you. If you’d like to volunteer, please contact me: kavery@shrewsbury.k12.ma.us

I’ve just received word that the Think Central (Math in Focus) website is now ready for parents. You can link to it via the button under Parent Resources in the upper right corner of this blog. Your child’s username and password can be obtained using your Power School Parent Portal. For more directions, click here ThinkCentralParentLogin  For directions on how to access your info using Power School, please refer to Mrs. McCubrey’s Falcon Flyer sent out today.

I briefly showed you the Student eBook on Thursday, which shows you in pictures and words what is being taught during each lesson, and how it’s being taught. This resource is especially helpful for homework when the unique way in which Math in Focus presents its math curriculum can lead to confusion for those of us who learned it differently. To access the eBook, go to the “My Library” section once logged into Think Central. Click on “Student Edition, G2,” and select “Book A.” We’ve just finished Lesson 4 of Chapter 1, which you can easily navigate to via the “contents” tab.

A further note on math homework: Please DO check your child’s homework when it’s finished and point out errors, especially when they are simply not following the directions.

This week, Reading and Spelling homework begins.

Reading The goal of reading at home is to instill a lifelong habit of reading for fun and for informative purposes outside of school or work. In addition, our young readers can benefit from practicing the reading skills and comprehension strategies taught at school. The amount of time spent on reading homework will vary depending on both the level and the length of the books. Students at levels below 18 may spend less than 20 minutes reading, while those at 20 and above may spend at least that long.

In any case, students will bring home one or more books each night, Monday-Thursday. Their job is to read; fill in the reading log each night (sent home each Monday); return the book(s) the next day; and bring other books home the next night. On the last day of the week, parents sign the bottom of the log and the student returns it for credit.

Some notes:

1. If your child loses the log, simply have him/her write down dates and titles on any paper. Still sign it on Friday.
2. It’s important that students read and record the book each night. One night of reading for 1 hour per week doesn’t help them meet the goal above. Please check that they’re following the expectation until they’re independent with this routine.
3. Although you don’t need to listen to him/her read, it’s a great idea to check in with your child by asking them to answer comprehension questions about what they’ve read (see Curriculum Night packet).
4. Students reading chapter books needn’t finish them in one night (think The Magic Treehouse series). Instead, they should write down chapters or pages read in 20 minutes. One chapter book may provide several night’s reading (which is authentically how adults read!).
5. If your child forgets or misplaces a reading book, simply have him/her read something from home or using online resources such as National Geographic for Kids.

Spelling Students will be taught grade 2 phonics in daily lessons this year. The spelling lists sent home are meant to provide additional practice. Each Monday, students will bring home 10 words. There are 3 lists to choose from, each using the phonics rule at different levels of challenge. Students will circle the appropriate list in class before bringing it home. In an effort to build confidence, most students will be asked to learn the basic level words at first. The list, and any study aids made at home, do not need to be returned to school. Students will be quizzed on the words on the last day of the school week (Thurs. this week). It’s recommended students spend 5 minutes a night practicing (with more/less depending on need).

Tips for learning words:

1. Copy the words onto cards/paper squares to use as flash cards.
2. Close your eyes and visually spell them in your mind repeatedly.
3. Practice writing the words a few times each or until correct the first time.
4. The TeachMama blog has some easy, creative, and fun ideas for learning spelling words!

As always, hit me with any questions if I can clarify!

Here’s us improving our FOCUS through Yoga; working on fluency and comprehension at Read to Others time; and mastering number comparisons at math time.