The homework for this week is to complete the Project Reflection worksheet about our class caterpillar/butterfly project. There is also a math sheet reviewing area measurement concepts learned this week. This homework is due on Friday, May 31st.
Important Dates:
June 1 - Saturday FUN FAIR @ Hodgson Senior Public School - 4:00 to 8:00 pm
June 5 - Jump Rope for Heart - fundraiser for the Heart & Stroke Foundation
June 7 - P.A. Day - no classes on this day
June 26 - Term 2 (final) report cards go home
June 27 - Last day of classes for the 2018-2019 school year
September 3 - First day of classes for the 2019-2020 school year
Our butterfly project is now finished. The children did many activities to reflect on their learning.
We learned the answers to the remaining student questions about butterflies.
* Did you know that some butterflies migrate south to spend the winter in a warmer place? Monarch butterflies fly to Mexico and then return back north in the spring. Other butterflies stay in the caterpillar or chrysalis form to hibernate over the winter because of a lack of food and warmth in the environment.
* Did you know that butterflies know where south is by visually tracking where the sun is and by using the Earth's magnetic field. (Butterflies have geomagnetic receptors in their antennae.)
* Did you know that butterflies can fly over 1 kilometre high above the surface of the Earth? That's like two CN Towers stacked on top of each other!
To understand more about what happens during metamorphosis inside the chrysalis, the class did an activity with Lego bricks. Each child used 10 bricks to make a long shape to represent a caterpillar. Then these Lego caterpillars were put in small ziplock bags. The challenge for the students was to for them to take apart the Lego caterpillars and reassemble the bricks into butterfly shapes, without opening the bag. It wasn't easy! We discussed how amazing it was that in real life, the caterpillar changes into caterpillar "soup" and reassembles itself into a butterfly, all within the small space of its chrysalis.
The class counted 39 different science facts they learned about butterflies! The students wrote these facts on cards and these fact cards are now part of our butterfly display in the hallway.
Finally, each child chose an empty chrysalis to put into a clear plastic container to keep as a memory of this class science project.
Here is a short video about the Monarch butterfly:
Another four-day week but the children were busy learning about how to measure area, working on their fiction butterfly stories and finishing up our class butterfly project.
In math, the class learn about area or the measurement of a surface inside a defined perimeter. To calculate area, units are used that are tiled edge-to-edge with no gaps or overlaps. Traditionally, area is measured in square units but other shapes, like equilateral triangles or rectangles, can be used as well. Students spotted ways in which area can be calculated easily around them by looking at square tiles on the floor or rectangle ceiling tiles. The children had several opportunities to estimate and calculate the area of objects around the classroom, like desks. They also learned that for a particular area, the smaller the unit of measure the more that are needed to calculate the area. At the end of the week, the students were experimenting with creating different shapes with the same area.
In writing, to compliment their caterpillar fiction stories, the children are now writing fiction stories about butterflies. These two stories sets, when finished, will be presented together as a single book.
In guided reading, the groups applied their knowledge of reading non-fiction texts to read and learn about the life cycle of the Monarch butterfly. The Monarch butterfly is similar to the Painted Lady butterfly but it is also quite different in that they migrate to a warmer climate (Mexico). (More information in the separate butterfly goodbye posting.)
In science, the children finished up our class butterfly project. (Please see photos and facts in a separate posting.
In art, the class learned an art technique with paint that creates symmetrical designs. By folding paper in half, adding paint and refolding and "squishing" the paint, the result is a beautiful abstract design. The children were so engaged by this activity, that they kept asking to make more and each child made five paintings. (Later, the class calculated how many paintings were made by skip counting by 5's, seventeen times to equal 85 paintings!)
The students later cut their paintings into symmetrical wing shapes, added a paper body to make their paintings into butterflies. These butterflies are now on display in the hallway outside of our classroom.
Books read aloud this week:
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (chapter book - continued) The Butterfly House by Sarah Smith Monarch Butterflies by Myrl Shireman
The homework for this week is to write the last story in the homework writing journal. A short paper drawing "lesson" was taped into each journal. Every student is asked to draw a monster using the instructions and then write a fiction story about the monster character. There is also a worksheet with math and science review questions. This homework is due on Friday, May 24th.
Parent Notes:
1. Due to the Victoria Day holiday, SWIM CLASS is now on WEDNESDAYS and LIBRARY is now on MONDAYS.
2. Please send your child to school prepared for the warmer, sunnier weather. Each child needs a water bottle, a hat and sunscreen. Hats are especially important as there is not a lot of shade on the playground and too much sun can cause headaches and nausea. Please recall that the children are outside for 1 hour and 15 minutes each day. (15 minutes before school, 15 minutes at morning recess, 30 minutes at lunch recess and 15 minutes at afternoon recess)
Important Dates:
May 20 - Victoria Day holiday
June 1 - Saturday FUN FAIR
June 5 - Jump Rope for Heart - fundraiser for the Heart & Stroke Foundation
June 7 - P.A. Day - no classes on this day
June 26 - Term 2 (final) report cards go home
June 27 - Last day of classes for the 2018-2019 school year
September 3 - First day of classes for the 2019-2020 school year
This week the children asked more questions about butterflies. By the end of the week, we went outside and release 11 butterflies and there were 6 chrysalids still in the butterfly house.
The children thought about all the changes happening inside each chrysalis. One student was wrapped in thin paper to help show and understand the difficulty of making such big changes in such a small space.
Here are some of the facts the class talked about:
* Butterflies drink but do not eat. (We put orange slices and orange Gatorade in the butterfly house for them to drink.
* A butterfly uses some of its blood to help straighten and flatten its wings when it comes out of the chrysalis. Then they push this blood out, since its not needed anymore.
* A butterfly uses its feet to taste.
* A butterfly uses its two antennae to smell.
* Their are over 100,000 kinds or species of moths and butterflies in the world. Of these, 15,000 are butterflies and 85,000 are moths.
* Butterflies breathe through holes in their sides called spiracles.
* Butterflies, like all insects, have 6 legs. However, only 4 legs can be seen. The two legs at the front are very small and short and difficult to see.
* The colours and patterns on butterfly wings are decided by the butterfly's DNA and are made up of small, coloured, overlapping scales (like pixels on a compter screen).
From preparing and performing the poem and dance for the Spring Concert to learning about capacity and area to releasing butterflies, the students had a lot of fun learning!
In science, the butterflies have begun to emerge from their chrysalids! More information and photos
can be found in a separate posting. At the end of the week, the class watched an episode of The Magic School Bus about butterflies.
In math, the children reviewed the proper use of the mass (weight) standard units of kilogram and gram. They were introduced to the concept of capacity or the measurement of how much something can hold. The standard units for capacity are litre and millilitre. A the end of the week, the children began to talk about how to measure area, or the surface within the perimeter of a shape. Area is measured in square units.
In reading, the children did a reading response activity based on the book, "Mummy on the Nile" by Canadian author Susan Aguilo. She was an author that visited our school two weeks ago. The class were asked to answer, in writing, some questions about the story.
In social studies, the class learned the history of Victoria Day. They chorally read a short non-fiction story and then answered some questions in writing. Qeen Victoria was such a well-like queen that people began to have a holiday around her actual birthday (May 24) and the tradition is to have fireworks to celebrate. Did you know that Queen Victoria became queen when she was only 18 years old and ruled for 64 years? Queen Victoria was Queen Elizabeth's great-great grandmother.
In writing, the students worked hard to complete the good copies of their caterpillar stories and made illustrations and front covers for their books.
The class was asked to create a "gratitude chain" to use for decorations in the auditorium for the concert. Each child wrote down what they were grateful for and why on a long piece of paper and these were linked together to make a chain. One sentence was "I am grateful for my family because they love me."
Finally, the children worked very hard and practised reciting the poem and doing the dance every day to prepare for the concert on Thursday night. They even learned the history of the balloons that we used in our performance. Did you know that balloons are made of rubber and were invented by the English scientist Michael Faraday in 1824, 195 years ago? (Faraday is known for his work in electromagnetism). The class also had a chance to watch the performances of the other classes, during a full rehearsal on Wednesday afternoon.
Books read aloud this week:
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (chapter book - continued)
The Curious Garden by Peter Brown
Mummy on the Nile by Susan Aguuilo
The Magic School Bus - Butterflies and the Bog Beast (DVD)
Due to my absence, homework was not assigned this week. Of course, the children should continue to read at home for a minimum of 20 minutes each day.
Parent Notes:
1. Our concert is on the evening of Thursday, May 16th. A concert invitation was sent home this week. Our class is performing in CONCERT A. Please drop off your child in Room 222 at 5:50 pm and proceed to the auditorium. The concert will begin at 6:15 pm. Organizers have asked that parents remain seated until the end of CONCERT A (approximately 7:00 pm) and then go to Room 222 to pick up your child.
2. A reminder that swimming is on TUESDAYS (Day 2).
3. Information about our school fundraiser for the Heart & Stroke Foundation was sent home this week.
Important Dates:
May 16 - Spring Concert (evening) - Our class will be performing in Concert A at 6:15 pm.
May 20 - Victoria Day - no classes on this day
June 5 - Jump Rope for Heart - fundraiser for the Heart & Stroke Foundation
June 7 - P.A. Day - no classes on this day June 27 - Last day of classes for the 2018-2019 school year
The caterpillars got bigger and bigger this week and about half of the caterpillars are now in the chrysalis stage of the life cycle. Each chrysalis is now in our "butterfly cage" or "butterfly house" to wait for the butterflies to come out.
The students are encouraged each day to write down what they see, draw diagrams and to write questions they have about what is happening with the caterpillars. Science is all about asking questions! These questions guide our research.
Here are some of the facts the children learned this week:
* The caterpillar is an insect. The insect life cycle has four stages. For a caterpillar the stages are: egg, larva (caterpillar), pupa (chrysalis) and adult (butterfly).
* The caterpillars make some red frass, attache to the top of the container and make a "J' shape, just before they change into a chrysalis.
* The pupa stage for butterflies is spelled: one chrysalis, two or more chrysalids.
* These caterpillars are the larva stage of the Painted Lady Butterfly (Latin name: Vanessa carduii).
* The chrysalis does not eat or drink.
* The chrysalis breathes using spriracles (tubes) just like the caterpillar does.
* There are gold spots on the chrysalis but scientists don't know why they are there.
* The process describing the change from caterpillar to butterfly inside the chrysalis is called "metamorphosis".
The children also wrote down in their science journals their ideas on what is happening inside the chrysalis and how it is happening.
This week the children continued to learn about the caterpillar/butterfly life cycle, began the unit on mass and created beautiful necklaces and cards for Mother's Day!
In writing, the students continued to work through the stages of the standard writing process as they write fiction stories about caterpillars. Most children are at the editing and revising stages, but some are working on their good copies and illustrations.
In reading, the guided reading groups this week met twice, to work through reading activities that focused on inference. Inference is an important reading concept, as often a reader is expected to understand more information than is written explicitly in the text. For example, in the statement, "The children played in the snow", is the season summer or winter? It doesn't say in the text, but the reader can infer or reason that the season is winter since there is snow outside only in winter.
In math, the children used what they know about a balance or scale, to help them understand the concept of mass and weight. In grade 2, the word we use is "mass" as is the amount of matter in an object. A car has more mass than a bike. Mass is measured in kilograms and grams. The mass of an object never changes. Weight is a measure of the pull of gravity on an object and weight can change depending on where the object is. In space, an object is weightless since there is no gravity there.
In science, the class continued to learn about the life cycle of a butterfly. Please see photos and notes in a separate posting.
On Monday, the class attended a Jump Rope for Heart assembly to talk about our school's annual tradition of raising money for the Heart & Stroke Foundation. At the end of the assembly, the school sang together the song they learned with our music teacher, Ms. Heath for "Music Monday".
The children were jewelry designers this week! They used what they knew about symmetry to create necklaces for Mother's Day gifts. They wrapped up the presents and made homemade cards, using paper "springs" to make the cards extra special.
Our concert performance is next week! The children are doing a fantastic job learning the dance steps and reciting the poem they have memorized.
Books read aloud this week:
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (chapter book - continued) Chowder by Peter Brown
The homework for this week is to complete the project reflection sheet on our 100 Books Party and to do the math review questions (elementary algebra) and weather words word search. This homework is due on Friday, May 10th.
Parent Notes:
1. A huge THANK YOU to all the parents for your support of our 100 Books Party celebration this week. It was wonderful for the children to share their work with their parents. Our guests also appreciated the snack contributions from the families. We made exactly 300 bookmarks to give away to our guests and there were 3 left...so 300-3= 297 people came to our party. Your support helped to make this project a big success!
2. A reminder that TUESDAY is our swim class day and FRIDAY is our library day. Please help your child to remember to bring his/her swim gear and library book. These can be brought to school anytime ahead of the day and stored at school.
Important Dates:
May 14 - Jump Rope for Heart - fundraiser for the Heart & Stroke Foundation
May 16 - Spring Concert (evening) - Our class will be performing. More information to follow soon.
May 20 - Victoria Day - no classes on this day
June 7 - P.A. Day - no classes on this day June 27 - Last day of classes for the 2018-2019 school year
This week the children started writing their observations in new science journals. They learned the types of information that scientists look for (for example, colour, size) and each day they measured and recorded the length of his/her caterpillar and looked at what was the same and what was different from the previous day.
Science is all about questions! The children recorded some of their questions in their journals and some on a poster. These questions will help guide our research. So far we've learned:
1. Caterpillars eat but do not drink.
2. The small, short light brown cylinders in the cups are called "frass" (caterpillar poop)
3. The black spiky spheres are old skin. The caterpillar gets too big for its skin and wiggles out of its old skin.
4. Caterpillars are insects. They have six thin legs (three pairs of legs) near the head and many fatter "prolegs" to help them walk and keep their long bodies off the ground.
The students learned the difference between a drawing (art) and a diagram (information). Scientists use diagrams to give information. The children are encouraged to use magnifying glasses to make and label diagrams in their science journals.
WOW! What a week! The class hosted our 100 Books Party, started a project raising caterpillars into butterflies and we welcomed a new student to our class.
In math, the children worked to create posters and videos to demonstrate what math they learned using the 100 books. (The video can be seen in a separate posting.) Later in the week the students used what they know about addition and subtraction to understand the "=" sign and what equality means. They also were introduced to elementary algebra concepts by figuring out the unknown in simple equations, for example, solving 10 = 6 + ? by figuring out what number ? represents.
In writing, the class reviewed the spelling and usage of 13 sets of homophones that we have studied so far in term two. The children also learned the spelling of words relevant to our caterpillar project (caterpillar, butterfly, life cycle). The class also started a new story writing activity. Each child has planned and is now writing the rough copy of a fiction story about a caterpillar.
In reading, the children made a connection to Earth Week and worked in partners to read and answer comprehension questions about how to care for our Earth.
In science, the class continued to talk about air and water in the environment. The children learned the meaning of many common weather words and they watched an episode of The Magic School Bus called "Kicks Up a Storm". (FYI - These are fun videos that demonstrate science concepts and many are available on youtube or dailymotion.)
The class began a new science project...raising caterpillars as they turn into butterflies. More photos and information can be seen in a separate posting.
In art, the students wrote about their foil sculptures and went to the display case between the lunch room and the auditorium to put their work into the case. We even made a sign using letters made out of aluminum foil!
Of course, on Wednesday morning it was our 100 Books Party! The children worked very hard to get ready for our guests and it was a fun time for everyone. Teachers, parents and students were all very impressed by the work that the children have done in Room 222. More comments, photos and videos can be seen in a separate posting.
On Thursday, the class attended a whole school assembly to hear the author Susan Aguilo read aloud her books and talk about being an author.
It was Earth Week this week and on Friday, the class attended an Earth Day assembly in the auditorium and went to the library to purchase used books. Some children also bought items at the Earth Day Bake Sale.
In preparation for our concert performance on Thursday, May 16th, the children began to learn the dance they will be performing to the song, "Upside Down and Inside Out" by OK GO. This song and video talk about gravity and the video was filmed in zero gravity. The class watched the video and at the end of the week, the children began to learn the dance steps to go with the song. Here is a link to the video:
Books read aloud this week:
Weather Words and What They Mean by Gail Gibbons What Pete Ate From A-Z (Really!) by Maira Kalman Julian by Dayal Kaur Khalsa Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (chapter book)
