Dress Up as a Word

 Cade as Leif Ericson

 Charlotte as Ruby Bridges

Kyle as Martin Luther King, Jr.

 Asia as Peru

When the clock strikes 8:45 and the morning bell sounds, 2B is really always abuzz. On Dress Up as a Word Day on March 22, though, it was especially lively. Students hurried around, ensuring their costumes were just so, fastening words and definitions to their fronts, scribbling definitions in a frenzy of energy. It was quite fun.  We had everybody in our room--from "ones" (the ones place in a number), to Vikings, to liquid, to fruit, to Beta fish. 

Months ago, I stayed late one night fashioning the most impractical costume ever. The students in 2B know my words of choice are "hope" and "kindness." So for this occasion, I chose to be "hope," the desire and expectation for something to happen. What I ended up with was a laminated suit of second grade pictures and hopes dangling on strings. Students got a real kick out of seeing me maneuvering around the room, holding up my laminated legs, with little yarn hopes flying around me (and who knew wearing laminated paper could be so HOT!?). The point is, I think of my hopes for this group of young people every day. I think of my hope for them to love school, to make the world a better place, to smile 100 times a day, to notice the small beautiful things in life, to accept others' differences. And this was just another chance I couldn't pass up to tell them about it. It weighs on my mind every day, and they should know. 

And they do know, for our room is filled with hope.

WORMS!

2B is having too much fun with poetry. Poetry is one of my favorite units because of the artistry inherent in its written craft. I feel especially passionate about it, and I'm thinking it's catching on amongst the class.

On Friday, Haleigh performed a rendition of "Hiccups" by the hilarious children's poet Jack Prelutsky with poise, humor, and fluency. I was in stitches and our class listened actively and in amazement at Haleigh's excellent reading and flawlessly placed "hiccup" sounds as she read. I wish I caught that one on tape. The celebrated her reading with a round of snaps, as in a coffee shop listening to a poetry slam.

Instead, I have a little gem of a video to share with you from Reading Workshop on Friday. Students are growing in their understanding that poems demand to be read in very intentional ways in order to carry the meaning and music they were written to carry.

Our students might have thought I had gone looney when I told them to "watch me" as I got up, walked across the room, sat on the floor quite close the wall, and started reading to it. The strategy is called Reading to the Wall, and it's a way to develop fluency and meaning in poetry by reading aloud to the wall to perfect performances while hearing oneself.

Though it's a little loud in the background (only because all students were excitedly reading to the piece of wall they had laid claim to), here is a short clip of Cade "reading to the wall." The poem, by Frank Flynn, is called "Spaghetti" and it is about spaghetti's uncanny, fun-but-grotesque likeness to worms (wriggling down your throat, flapping on the side of your face as you slurp). At one point, Flynn writes "WORMS!" on the page...so when you hear lots of screaming, it means students reading to the wall around the room had reached that part and are reading it just as it was meant to be read--in a scream! Next time you eat spaghetti, I hope you don't think of WORMS! 

Travel To Peru!

Who knew our second graders could develop PowerPoint Presentations that could rival some of my college professors!?! :)

As a culminating project for our Social Studies Unit on Peru, students were guided through the research process as they researched, took notes, drafted, and designed presentations on various selected topics relevant to Peru. Their mission? To become experts on their topic and teach their classmates more than they would have known from our regular whole-group instruction on Peru.

Here is a sample--our student group who researched what it is like to go to school in Peru was captured on film to give you a taste of what our second graders were able to produce.

It was very impressive to behold the level of professionalism that students were able to carry out. Their process was mega-multistep:
1. Rate choices for topic preferences from 1-5.
2. Read and highlight key information in 3 print sources.
3. Reread highlighted information and paraphrase.
4. Make decisions within each group as to what material each student in the group would be responsible for reporting on.
5. Craft an outline for each PowerPoint slide with only KEY words.
6. Decide as a group on a slide layout and create slides.
7. Select images that would support text and insert on slides.
8. Craft notecards that elaborate richly on words from slides.
9. Rehearse as a group and provide feedback to one another before presenting.
10. Present as a group to the rest of the class.
11. Provide written feedback to one another and self reflections.

Wow. When I type it out like this, I am even more amazed at the grown up work our students have done. This is super exciting because these research, public speaking, and collaborative group work skills will serve our students well throughout life. Not to mention, students were able to compare and contrast life in CT to life in Peru with understanding, our goal in working to understand cultural significance and grow global perspectives.

We're settin' these second graders up for success!

The Content of our Character

At our faculty meeting this week, we reviewed the results from the Climate Survey completed by staff, parents, and students at the beginning of the school year. Kindness is king in 2B--all students know that kindness is my favorite word and concept. Ever. Morning Meeting fosters community and kindness, and I try to foster kindness throughout the day in subtle ways, just through the way we communicate, our nonverbal language, etc. The results of the student surveys were promising in that many students responded that someone says something nice to them and/or they say something nice to someone each day. Some students, though, indicated that they say or hear mean words being spoken toward peers. A part of me cringes in acknowledging that this is reality: people are not always kind. But the ceaseless idealist in me says: I will work tirelessly to help students in 2B to be the kindest in all the land.

It's March. And our students have been together most days of the week for most waking hours of the day for about 6 months. Not to mention learning and growing in a classroom together through Kindergarten and 1st grade, as well, for the most part. With that being said, at this point in the year, I think we can all use a refresher focus on kindness. In celebration of kindness, here are some recent shots of our students--smiling, cooperating, being silly, having fun.

We continue to focus on building character at school. Here are some of our school wide character focuses to keep in mind in teaching and learning with your child at home. I am quite sure we all hope for these things for our students. I encourage you to think through how you can focus on these concepts with your child in daily life at home :).

Respect: The Golden Rule, courteous actions, acceptance, nonviolence, understanding

Responsibility: accountability, self-control, perseverance, hard work, self-discipline, right/wrong, thinking before acting

Caring: show concern for others, friendliness, empathy, charitable, compassion, generosity

Effective Communicator: patience, active listening, optimism, assertion, cooperation, tolerance, reliability, just, honest, integrity

Creative Problem Solver: take initiative, persist in spite of obstacles, flexibility, creativity, resourcefulness, open-mindedness, leadership

Citizenship: honor and respect for authority, for our country, volunteer, have a voice

100 Days Smarter

Since the 100th day of school came and went, time has felt like it's speeding up! It was precisely 8:42 when I began making this decoration for our door on the 100th day of school. I pressed the adhesive onto the door just as the first second grader rounded the corner to start their day and their reactions were SO worth it. Their faces absolutely lit up as they entered the classroom and all were very gentle so that all could enjoy our celebratory streamers all day.

The truth is, our students are 100 days smarter. Well, more than 100 days smarter now! When I take a moment to reflect on what students could do in late August as fresh second graders compared to what they can do now, I am floored. Some of you have been through life with a second grader before and some of you are new to this experience. Well, I'm right along with you newbies. This is my first year watching this seven and eight year old physical, emotional, and cognitive development process unfold. 

Our students' stamina in reading and writing is much longer. Their mental addition and subtraction is swifter. Their ability to construct many sentences in writing is far less laborious than at the beginning of the year. Their ability to explain their thinking is more cohesive. Their spelling requires less guessing-work on my part :). Their group work is more independent. Do you notice it? 

Can't wait to revisit this idea in June and behold what I find! 

On the 100th day of school, students produced self-portaits and accompanying paragraphs about what life will be like for them when they are 100. I recently sent these home. Did you enjoy them?!

Gung Hei Fat Choy!

Noisemakers sounded, gongs rang out, drums rapped, and 2B paraded like it was going out of style. Mrs. O'Malley arrived in Room 108 and the students waited patiently and discussed the significance of the Chinese New Year...but they knew a super grand finale was coming. To honor the Chinese New Year and part of C.C.'s heritage, we celebrated with the O'Malley's beautiful costumes, instruments, and fanfare.

2013 is the year of the snake. I was interested to research the Chinese zodiac signs for our students' birth year. Here's what I found:

Our second graders who were born in 2004: Quick-witted, charming, lucky, adaptable, bright, versatile, lively, smart

Our second graders who were born in 2005: Honest, energetic, intelligent, flamboyant, flexible, diverse, confident

Do the descriptions fit your second grader? 

This video? The wildest 2B has ever been...and will ever be!