Stahley Newsletter 1/23/12
- Details
- Category: Second
- Published on Monday, 23 January 2012 15:17
- Written by Gale_Stahley
- Hits: 107
Room 2 News ~ January 23, 2012
Dear Parents,
Recently the children began a new unit in science, the study of sound. Right now they are working their way through 5 sound stations, experimenting with various objects (rulers, rubber bands, musical triangles, nails, and their voice box), and making and recording observations. So far they are noticing that sound involves vibrations, has high and low pitch, and volume. As they share their observations they are also sharing their thoughts...here a few: "I'm wondering how sound travels through things?", "I'm wondering why I can feel the vibrations in my hand when I hold the triangle?" and "I think that the volume gets louder if I hit the object harder!" These questions really show that the children are thinking about their experiments and trying to figure things out! We will be designing our own musical instruments in about a week. If you have any material that we could use to create these instruments it would be great if you could send it in. The rules for creating the instrument are that the instrument must be able to change pitch and volume. Please make sure that nothing sharp or breakable is sent in.
In social studies we are moving from studying about different cultures around the world to studying about the history of the civil rights movement. The children will read about Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks and Ruby Bridges. We will explore how they can become involved in being peacemakers and make a difference in our world.
Our math studies are now focused on collecting data and taking surveys. I have attached a copy of the family letter (to the hardcopy of the newsletter) which details the mathematics in this unit. We will continue to work on building the children's confidence in problem solving as well as work on becoming more automatic with their number facts.
Winter sports seems to be going great! The children are coming to school excited each Wednesday morning, and when they return from their sport there is a lot of conversation about how they are improving!
Several parents have asked about homework. Usually I will send homework home on either Monday or Tuesday and it is due back on Friday. Up until now the homework has been to read for 10 minutes each night and complete one or two math papers. Starting this week we will be asking children to read for at least 20 minutes each night (more if they want). Parents are asked to sign the homework sheet and make comments (encouraging remarks to your child or any questions you may have). I generally do not send homework home on short weeks, so if there is a holiday or an in-service day your child will probably not receive any homework. Please help your child establish good homework routines.
Your child's report card was sent home on Friday. I must say as I reread the reports before sending them home I was struck by what a great class this is! Our room is filled with fun loving and caring children, which makes Room 2 a pretty cool place to be :) Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any question about the report card ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ).
Sincerely,
Gale Stahley