October 2016 Update

mClass testing is finished!  Although it is a tedious task, the exercise permits my first in depth interaction with each of my students one on one.  We have sweet conversations before and after the test which is deeply gratifying.  Here I begin to know your children as individuals.  They are wonderful human beings!

To date, our units of study are:

Science: Weather: Students learn about the sun's energy as heat source.  We baked s'mores in solar ovens to demonstrate this fact.  Your children created hypotheses about what would happen in the solar ovens and then wrote about how they believed the sun works to warm to land, air and water on our planet.  We are now focused on some tools that measure our weather and includes a thermometer, a rain gauge, an anemometer (measures wind speed) and a wind vane (wind direction).

Reading:  A great deal of time is spent preparing students to know what to do during Readers Workshop.  Students understand they must be relatively self-sufficient during this time so that I am able to work with small guided reading or strategy groups. They've learned how to pick "just right" books, they know what to do when they have to use the restroom, get a bandaid, water etc. they've been instructed about what do when they run into tricky words and how to stop, think and wonder about their texts.  

Writing:  We have been writing personal narratives.  Students have complied a resource of "ideas" in order that they may continue to write even when they "finish" a piece.  

  Our focus for our personal narrative stories has been on writing about a "small moment".  We attempt to narrow the specific period of time we are writing about, to a window of 10-20 minutes.  For example, a story about watching an enormous wave destroy your sand castle vs. "My Day at the Beach".  Students develop an understanding of adding details to their story both with words and illustrations. You might ask your child to tell you their story "across their hand".  This tool allows students to practice telling their story in sequence: beginning, middle, middle, middle and end.  We will have our first author celebration on Friday, Oct. 7. No invites this time, but stay tuned.  

Dreamer

  I am fortunate because my world is colored from the perspective of optimism.  Don't get me wrong, I have had my share of disappointments and personal suffering.  I know all of us have struggles, some far greater than others. But, I guess I'm a dreamer, filled with hope and wonder and I maintain that there is good in the world and opportunity for each and every individual.  My goal is to identify and nourish the opportunities for my students.
  2nd grade is an interesting year of growth.  I compare the learning your children will go through to an enormous locomotive.  Picture that big, black, engine at the front of a hundred cars plus a caboose behind it.  The train stands ready to move, the engine is packed with abundant coal and the conductor prepares for the trip.  She eases the engine to life; carefully pressing the ignition.  The fire, burning slowly begins to burn hotter.  The engineer stokes the fire among the coals, slowly adding more to intensify the heat.  Once the fire has reached the ideal temperature, then, and only then, does the conductor engage the forward throttle.  At first there is almost no movement, the wheels of the engine spin in place... reaching, turning and gripping the track below.  All this "movement" is happening, but to the person standing at the depot, they don't see the train "moving".  Suddenly, the wheel grabs the track and the train lurches forward, success!  But success doesn't last because the train has only moved a foot in it's long journey.  The wheels slip and grip sporadically.  In time, the wheels begin to grip more than slip. Now, the movement is perceptible to those folks who are standing at the depot. The conductor has carefully pushed the throttle forward and she is asking for more coal in the fire so they can go a bit faster.  At this point, the entire train is moving and it's clear that the train (your child) will reach his or her destination.
  Please join me on this journey.  Ask questions, share your thoughts, inform me of struggles and concerns and together we will reach the destination.  

On Your Mark, Get Set...

I think summer is a miracle.  It provides opportunities for gathering, relaxing, traveling, sleeping and recharging.   For me it also provides the luxury of time; time to think and to discuss and to listen.  I hope you've had some time for what ever it may have been that helps you to identify the things in your life that are important to you. 

Welcome to my blog.  This is your information resource for my classes.  
Sra. Sonia Montoya and I are your child's second grade teachers.  I teach Literacy, (Reading Workshop, Writing Workshop and word work), I also teach Science and Health.   Sra. Montoya teaches Spanish Literacy, Math and Social Studies all in Spanish.  We are easily available via email.  Please contact us with your questions and/or concerns.  jennifert.spencer@cms.k12.nc.us,  s1.montoyacamargo@cms.k12.nc.us

Communication, Communication, Communication is really vital between home and school.
Please-please-please leave your contact information with me (either phone or email) when you come to the Meet The Teacher Open House on Aug. 25th.  This event is slightly different than in previous years; please stop by between 3-5 p.m. on Thursday 8/25 to say hello. I will have a bit of "homework" for your child. There will not be a formal presentation that day. Then on Sept. 8th we will have a K-2 Curriculum Night and Family Social.  On that evening (Sept. 8th), we will talk about the curriculum and expectations for the year.  At that point you may have formed some questions and we encourage you to email them to us in advance or bring them that night.