Shout-outs from Second: Setting Sail Into Second Grade

Wow! What a busy, fun, exciting, EXHAUSTING week! Twenty-two sweet second graders walked into both my classroom and life this week and it couldn't have gone better. I had a lot of "getting to know you" activities planned, so we've learned quite a bit about each other. One was a camping activity where they had to choose only 5 items to take on a camping trip. Then, they got with a group to decide on the 5 they wanted as a group. Finally, we chose the 5 we would take as a class. They decided on a compass (even though a phone would have that app, the battery could die), a tent for shelter, water so we wouldn't have to drink from the lake, a fishing pole to catch our food, and a knife for protection and to clean the fish. It was fun listening to their opinions/arguments :)

We also read several books together. One of my favorite is Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge about a little boy trying to get his elderly friend's memories back. They may have come home to tell you I cried, and that is true. I connected the story to what we're currently experiencing with my grandmother, so I got a little emotional. But it is truly a beautiful story if you would like to read it yourself. The students then were assigned to bring in 3 things that reminded them of something special: like in the book, something from long ago, warm, precious, sad, or funny. I enjoyed listening to them share their items today and hearing about what fills their heart.
This week was a lot of learning routines and getting back in the swing of things. Next week, we're pulling up our anchor and setting sail into some awesome 2nd grade work! Please be sure to read the newsletter weekly as to what we're learning, their homework assignments, and the week's tests. Call or email me if you have any questions or concerns. I'm looking forward to an even more exciting week next week!