2H Class Blog!: Feb. 11th News

Igloo Building was a HUGE success!!

Between welcoming our new student, celebrating 100 days of learning, and kicking off the Winter Olympics, this week was jam-packed!!!

Highlights from our week:

*Olympics: This week, we celebrated the start of the 2018 Winter Olympics!! It was SO fun learning more about the country of Switzerland, exploring the different Winter Olympic sporting events, and joining all of SMS for our very own Opening Ceremony!

Early in the week, after watching several inspirational movie clips, we talked about what it takes to be an Olympic Athlete (focusing primarily on the mental components). Everyone agreed that you would absolutely have to have a growth mindset! After brainstorming a list of traits, each Owl had to think about how they were like an Olympic Athlete. They all clearly have the right attitude--I wouldn't be surprised if one day we see them on an Olympic stage!

On Friday, we marched down to the cafe sporting or handmade Alpine Hats!

After reciting the Olympic Creed, we got to meet Eric Flaim, an SMS parent and Olympic Medalist! Mr. Flaim shared his journey as an Olympic speed skater with us. He showed us his medals from the 1988 and 1994 Winter Olympics! Before bringing our ceremony to a close, Mr. Flaim shared a very important message with all the SMS Wolves:

"Have a dream. Have a goal. Write them down and don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it!"

Thank you to Mr. Flaim for helping kick off our study of the Winter Olympics! Go Team Switzerland and Go Team USA!

*Math Workshop: This week during math workshop, we began a unit on measurement. We discussed different tools used for measuring as well as different units. We listened to the tale of the King's foot and learned how standard units of measurement came to be. Throughout the week, we measured objects (and people!) around the classroom. Measuring sure is fun!

While we focused on the U.S. Customary system this week, exploring only feet and inches, next week we will look at the Metric System and begin using centimeters and meters.

*Reader's Workshop: Last week, each reader was given an "Emergency Reading Tool Kit" equipped with a special pen and lots and lots of post-it notes. One strategy readers can use when they're stuck at a confusing part, or if they want to hold on to important information, is to "stop & jot" their thinking on a sticky note. We had a lot of fun practicing using our tool kit during various shared reading experiences. Then, they really enjoyed going off to use their tool kits independently. They have some powerful, deep thinking going on!!!

Next week, we will review all of the strategies we've learned this year. After creating individual goals, we will create "goal teams" to help each other reach our reading goals!

*Science: I don't know if you've heard, but second graders had a BLAST participating in their very first "Science Magic"! Every Monday in February, they will be challenged to think like scientists and complete various science experiments. While using those skills is nothing new for the Owl class, what IS new is where they'll be completing the experiments and with who! They will be traveling to each second grade classroom and working with that teacher on a matter-related experiment. This past week, in Ms. Donlon's room, they explored a fourth state of matter: the colloids! By making slime (a fan favorite!), the Owls once again saw how some substances can have properties of both solids and liquids. Ms. Donlon said that our scientists knew SO much about solids, liquids, and gases, and worked incredibly well together throughout the experiment. Bravo, Owls! You can look forward to visiting Ms. Bucklin's class for Science Magic tomorrow!

In our own classroom, we continued thinking like chemical engineers as we evaluated the properties of play dough. Comparing high quality, store-bought play dough with lower quality, "Mrs. Healey-made" play dough, students had to analyze each sample.

Next week, they'll be put to the test as they experiment how to improve the homemade batch of play dough! What is just the right amount of each ingredient they will need???

*Scholastic Book Order: Looking for some new books for February break? February book order forms were sent home early last week, and Scholastic's full catalog is available online. Orders are due by the end of the day tomorrow, Feb. 12th, so they arrive before the vacation week!

*5th Grade Buddies: Thank you for sending in snow gear last Friday. I think I can speak for everyone when I say we were able to complete our most exciting engineering challenge EVER!! Working ALL together, 2H and 5L teamed up to build an "igloo" that could house all 40 of us!! It was amazing how quickly our structure came together with all hands on deck! Take a look at their fabulous work!

It's going to be hard to top this design challenge, but we'll certainly try!! :)

*Valentine's Day: Our class will be having a small Valentine’s Celebration Wednesday, February 14th. Students are encouraged to exchange valentines with their peers. Please be mindful of our classroom food allergies (peanuts and tree nuts) and remind your child that if they are bringing in valentines, they must bring one for every member of our class.

Our class of 19 includes:

Aubrey, Caroline, Devin, Dylan, Eleanor, Gabe,

Graham, Hazel, Isaiah, Izzy, Jake, James, Lena,

Lily, Madeleine, May, Mattigan, Ron, and Sai