October 31, 2018

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!  

Students and staff had a great time seeing all of the amazing costumes during the Parade.  Then we spent our afternoon enjoying the fun stations that  Miss Mullan planned for us.  Be sure to check out our Photo Gallery for more photos.  Special thank you to Mrs. Dennis, Ms. Bolle and Mr. Mullan who lent a hand in our class this afternoon.  Also, thank you to the parents who sent party snack.  Your support is greatly appreciated!

October 30, 2018

In Math students learned four strategies for predicting the next term.  1) Guessing, 2) Using the last term in the picture, 3) Using the length of the core to estimate and 4) The most likely term.  They learned that both guessing and the most likely term are not overly effective.   They did an amazing job of using graph paper to create, predict and extend to check their answer. 

Students also learned a game, ON MY HEAD, to review basic fact strategy +/-1.  A video of this game can be found on our Mental Math Games page of our blog.  

Notes for tomorrow:
- Snack parents, please drop your snack at the office in the morning.
- Wear costumes to school.
- RBES Costume Parade 9am.
- Class party in the afternoon. 

Reminders:
- Club Moo is now available on HotLunches.net
- There is no school on November 1

October 29, 2018

Up up and away!  Today we flew to Halifax, special thank you to Air Canada for the safe flight.  Since Halilfax was not our final destination, students boarded a bus and made the 3 hour drive to Meteghan.  Students took a look through TripAdvisor and realized that there are not many places for visitors to stay chose to stay at the Anchor Inn Bed and Breakfast.  I hope you don't miss your child too much while we are staying in Meteghan for this next month!  

In Math, students continued creating patterns in different ways.  

Our PE focus this week is squats.  Miss Mullan read the story Big Pumpkin and during the story, we turned our bodies into pumpkins, ghosts, witches and vampires; a lot of squats were done getting into pumpkin position during the story.  

We also began our MindUp Curriculum.  Students learned that their brains have three key parts which are involved in thinking and learning.  More information is available HERE. 

October 26, 2018

Congratulations to Skyla, who was the 2D Student of the Week!


It was an exciting day, because the students "passports" arrived and so we will all be able to catch the "plane" to Meteghan, which is departing on Monday!  In Social Studies, students compared the weather in Meteghan to the weather in Devon.  Can you believe that they were both the exact same!?!  Students created a paper doll of themselves dressed in weather appropriate clothing for their trip, which they will be taking on Monday.  

During their Math lesson, students created and described their repeating patterns in different ways.  Take a look in their agenda, where they converted a shape pattern into an AB pattern.

Students also had their first Word Sort test this afternoon.  Each child is bribing home a copy of his/her test, please sign and return it on Monday.  

October 25, 2018

I am away today at a JUMP Math PD session in Red Deer.  However, the 2D students are hard at work with Miss Mullan and Mrs. Forchuk.  I can't wait to get back tomorrow and see the finished Monster in a Jar stories!  

Tomorrow is the first Word Sort Test for 2D students.  It is administered online using Spelling City.  I encourage you to spend a little time this evening doing the online practice test; this will help to familiarize your child with the format. 

October 24, 2018

Today we continued our Monster in a Jar writing.  Students used the ideas that were generated on their planning page and converted them into sentences.  We discussed the importance of beginning a sentence with an uppercase letter and ending it with punctuation.  As part of sentence 4, students learned a trick for writing the word because - Baby Eats Candy Apples Until She Explodes.  

In Art, Miss Mullan taught the students how to use oil pastels and how to blend.  Their pumpkin masterpieces are now hanging outside our classroom.  Stop by and see their amazing work!



There is no library this week, due to the book fair.  If you have not yet had a chance to visit, the book fair will remain open until 3pm tomorrow; be sure to stop by!

October 23, 2018

Thank you to all of the 2D parents and students who came to school this evening for Parent Teacher Meetings.  I encourage you to continue checking our blog daily and PowerSchool on a weekly basis.  If you have any questions about PowerSchool marks or your child's progress, please be sure to reach out via email or by stopping in after school.  

In the afternoon, we were treated to an Eatrh Ranger Experience!  There are so many ways that we can help the Earth; become an Earth Ranger today!  
 

October 22, 2018

Students learned the term attribute today in Math.  They were faced with a challenge of identifying which attributes (shape, size, colour, direction or thickness) were changing in a pattern.

Our focus for the month of November will be Social Studies and the community of Meteghan.  Miss Mullan will guide the students through a month long exploration of this east coast Acadian community.  If you have visited Meteghan or have Acadian artifacts, please reach out via email, we would love for you to share them with us!!

Students also began a week-long writing project called, Monster in a Jar.  Today they trapped their monsters - some are scary, while others are cuddly.


Reminders:
- The Earth Rangers will be at RBES tomorrow afternoon at 2pm.  
- The book fair is now open.
- Parent Teacher Meetings are tomorrow evening.  Please bring your child with you to these meetings.

October 18, 2018

Students used their knowledge about materials which absorb or repel liquids to solve a science problem.  Students were asked to move water across our classroom but all they were given to use was an old green strawberry basket.  Students quickly discovered that if they lined their strawberry baskets with materials that repel liquid, they were able to hold the water and safely transport it.  Way to go, 2D Scientists!  

In Math, students identified, described, extended, and created repeating patterns in which two attributes change.  This was certainly a tad trickier than creating one attribute repeating patterns.  Ask your child to draw a pattern using two changing attributes and circle the core. 

Enjoy your long weekend!

October 17, 2018

It may have been beautiful outside, but today in 2D, we made it rain! Condensation, precipitation, evaporation were our science words of the day.  Ask your child to explain our water cycle experiment to you.


In math students continued their exploration of repeating patterns and identifying pattern core.  Using a variety of manipulative, they created a number of repeating patterns.  


Miss Mullan lead students in an art project.  They create wax crayon resist leaves using watercolours, crayons and sharpies.  This art project will be on display in our classroom for the next week.


This afternoon, we talked about small moments - these are little, true, things that happen to us.  Students were introduced to the steps to writing a small moment narrative:
1. Think of an idea (a thing you do, a thing that happened to you)
2. Plan (touch and tell, share, sketch)
3. Write (sentences, re-read, edit)
Each student created a short 4 sentences story today that was based on a small moment that he/she experienced.  
WE ARE AUTHORS!!! 


Reminders:
- Fruit orders are due tomorrow.
- Home reading books and library books must be returned tomorrow.
- There is no school on Friday, it is a PD Day.  
  

October 16, 2018

We dove into our third Math Unit today!  Patterns is one of my favourites and I can already tell it is a hit with the students also!  We learned the math words: pattern, core and term today.  Ask your child to make a pattern at home this evening using forks and spoons.  Then ask him/her to identify the core (the part that repeats).


In science we discovered the identity of the mystery crystals from yesterday's experiment.  One was grape juice crystals (did not turn into a solid over night), the other was JELL-O (did turn back into a solid, but in a different form than originally).

The photographer was in the school today and so we got to have PE outside!  Miss. Mullan lead us in two fun games.  It was nice to be outside enjoying Fall!  


Tasty Tuesday was SPOOK-TACULAR!  Thank you to Mrs. Howatt, who provided the ingredients for our Ghost Brownies!

October 15, 2018

In Math, we continued our exploration of the basic fact strategy +/-0.  Students will have their assessment on this strategy on Thursday.

We also continued our detective work to find Tina the Thankless Turkey.  Students had to decode the message, no Turkeys reported at any hospital, and were able to cross two more locations off our list.  We are getting closer to locating Tina!  

In science, we discovered that some solids (2 mystery crystals) can be dissolved in liquids, while others (coffee grounds) can not.  Our experiment continued to see if we are able to turn these liquids back into a solid - the liquids are in the fridge, and tomorrow we will examine the result of that experiment.   

October 12, 2018

Congratulations to Teagen, who was the 2D Student of the Week!


Science was a wet one!  Students tested a variety of materials to determine if the absorb or repel water.  The 2D scientists determined that kleenex, paper towel, cotton pads and the sponge absorbed water; whereas, nylon, plastic, tinfoil and wax paper all repelled the water.  


In Math, students learned to write ordinal numbers and used ordinal numbers to talk about position.  We played a game called Ordinal Number Memory; students are bringing home the game pieces and I encourage you to play this game with your child this weekend.  


Remember, reading daily is invaluable in developing voracious readers.  If your child reads their good fit books at home this weekend, please sign their reading calendar.  

Reminders from the office:

Parent meeting information is available on the RBES Website (click HERE).  During Parent meeting night, Mrs. Kloschinsky will be running PowerSchool parent sessions; I encourage all parents in 2D to attend a session before or after our meeting.  
 

October 11, 2018

Students have been working diligently this week building foundational knowledge about the Words Their Way word sort activities.  The following schedule is how the word sorts will be reviewed in class. 

Monday - Cut and learn the sort 

Tuesday - Draw and label

Wednesday - Write the sort

Thursday - Rainbow words

Friday - Spelling test

In Math, we reviewed numbers to 66 by playing Highest Number Horse Race.  This game challenges students to subtilize the numbers on the dice, create and say two digit numbers, identify which two digit number is greater.  You don't need this fancy dice tray to play this game at home, you can simply roll two dice and give a point to the higher number.  First one to 10 wins!!  

Please assist your child in remembering his/her home reading bag for class tomorrow.  New books will come home on Monday. 

October 10, 2018

During our Word Sort this morning, we learned how to write sorts and also how to play Blind Buddy Sort with a partner.  This is an excellent way to review sort words at home.  


In Art, students used sharpies and crayons to create adorable stick person self portraits!  I can't not wait to hang the finished products outside our classroom!


In Math, students began creating their own simple math problems.  

Please remember that tomorrow we have library, if you have not done so already, please return all library books tomorrow morning. 

October 9, 2018

Today we welcomed Miss. Mullan into our classroom.  She is a fourth year education student from the University of Alberta and will be completing her 9 week practicum in our classroom.  We are delighted to have her with us and look forward to positively contributing to her teaching journey.


Today we began our home reading program.  All information about the program is in the canvas bag, but here's the Coles Notes version:
- read 15 minutes per day, 5 days a week
- if your child reads 15 minutes, initial the home reading calendar page in his/her agenda
- home reading bags come home on Monday and are to be returned every Friday (Thursday if it is a short week)
- students can read any "good fit books" from their reading bag, library books or books from home. 
- every few weeks, I will send home a new Parent Pipeline.  This document is very valuable, as it explains strategies we are discussing in class, please review it and reinforce the strategies with your child during his/her home reading time.

Together we can foster a love of literature and support your child as he/she becomes a voracious reader!  

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope your weekend includes quality time with loved ones, 

tasty turkey and lots of pumpkin pie!  

October 5, 2018

Science was a race to the finish today.  We investigated how liquids would move down a slanted surface.  We discovered that thicker liquids move more slowly than thinner liquids.  The liquids that move slowly have a high viscosity.


Students used the compound words they had brainstormed at home or in class to collaboratively create a compound word ring.

Students' Thankful Turkeys have been completed and they are coming home today!  I hope you enjoy this little holiday decoration.


Please remember that there is no school on Monday.  Enjoy your long weekend!

October 4, 2018

Our trip to the Telus World of Science was amazing!  Students received a glimpse into two of the units we will be covering later this year.  They enjoyed learning about magnetism and cold temperatures during their interactive lessons.  The IMAX is always a hit and the Great Barrier Reef did not disappoint!  Be sure to check out all the photos in the October Album. 

Thank you to our amazing volunteers: Mrs. Mayguard, Mrs. Howitt, Mrs. Primosch and Ms. Craddock.  Today was made possible because of your support!  

October 3, 2018

EARLY DISMISSAL DAY!!  I hope you all enjoy the extra time with your little ones this evening.  The teachers were busy this afternoon learning and organizing.  Our staff are fortunate to have this short time each month to work together and ensure RBES remains awesome!! 

In science, students explored a variety of liquids.  They used their prior knowledge and senses to identify four mystery liquids.  Students were also introduced to the terms opaque and transparent.  


Math was a continuation of word problem exploration.  Today we moved into more complex addition problems.  See if your child can show you how to solve this math problem (showing both a drawing and an addition sentence):  2D were having a picnic.  Skyla brought 5 apples, Karter brought 7 cookies, and Allaina brought 3 sandwiches.  Altogether, how many foods did the students bring to school?  

Important information for tomorrow:
- We depart at 8:35 sharp
- Pack a brown bag lunch (with your child's name) - students will not be taking their backpacks
-Wear running shoes (not boots)  
-Thank you to our 4 fabulous parent volunteers!  

October 2, 2018

Today we began our Word Sorts, this week students will learn and practice activities in class and then differentiated lists will begin coming home on October 15th. 

In Daily 5, we launched word work.  This activity provides "students an opportunity to experiment with spelling patterns, memorize high-frequency words, and develop a genuine curiosity for and interest in new and unique words. By playing with words, word patterns, word families, prefixes, suffixes, and so on, students hone their knowledge of words and increase their speaking and writing skills." (Daily 5 website)  

In Math, we began solving simple word problems that involved both addition and subtraction to 20.  

Science brought yet another experiment!  Today we did two trials to determine the number of water drops a penny could hold.  Students learned that this experiment was made possibly due to the surface tension of water.  I challenged them to go home and attempt to create a water dome in a small cup.  Have fun with this one, it's a blast!  

October 1, 2018

Today RBES staff and students participated in Orange Shirt Day.  We discussed residential schools and watched a short video in which Phyllis Webstad presents her memories of Residential schools and the meaning of Orange Shirt Day.


In Grade 2, we alternate between social and science on a monthly basis.  This allows a greater focus on the concepts being covered.  Today we transitioned to science and students are over the moon at the prospect of doing experiments for the next few weeks!  Our topic is Exploring Liquids.  Today we discussed the differences between solids, liquids and gasses at a molecular level.  Then identified if various objects were solids or liquids.  Students completed their first experiment, exploring water, where they used their 5 senses to explore this common liquid.  


Weekly Reminders:
- Field trip permission is online and must be completed prior to Wednesday.
- Wednesday is early dismissal (2:21).
- Thursday is our Field Trip to the Telus World of Science