Welcome to 2 nd Grade Curriculum Night

1. Welcome to 2nd GradeCurriculum Night

2. Reading • Harcourt Trophies literacy program • Comprehension activities include summarizing, comparing/contrasting, making inferences, asking and answering questions, etc. • More emphasis on non-fiction reading. • Phonics help to strengthen decoding and fluency.

3. Language Arts • Each Harcourt story includes a phonics and spelling skill, vocabulary words and grammar focus.

4. Writing • Examples of 2nd grade writing include narrative, informational and opinion writing. • Resources include Harcourt Writing, Writer’s Workshop (Lucy Calkins) and the Six Traits of Writing.

5. Math • Investigations: hands-on explorations into math topics, problem-solving and inventive thinking about math. • Major topics include number sense, addition and subtraction of two digit numbers, time, money, measurement, geometry, graphing, discrete math and fractions.

6. Science • Physical science: Solids, Liquids and Gases • Earth science: Weather • Life science: Human Body, Mammals, Insects • Topics include experiments and integrated writing.

7. Social Studies • Resource: Harcourt Social Studies, integrates reading and writing skills into Social Studies. • Major units include: Government, Our World, People Around Us, The Marketplace, and Using Resources

8. Health • Harcourt Health: provides foundation for studying healthy practices • Healthy food choices • Importance of activity • Community health resources

9. Technology • Use of websites such as Dreambox, Bookflix, and other resources. • Programs include Pixie 2, Kidspiration, Word, Power Point, and Typing Agent. • Internet used for research in science and social studies. http://www.kyrene.org/Page/5262

10. Details, Details, Details • Snacks/Birthdays • Star Student/VIP • Scholastic News • Book Orders • Field Trips/Donations • Boxtops • Water bottles – water only • PE/Library days

11. Grading • Proficient – Consistently uses a skill, shows mastery of content. • Developing – Use of a skill is emerging, on the way to mastery. • Area of concern – Experiencing significant difficulty in an area.

12. Grading • Approximate ranges of grades: • Proficient – scores of 85% or higher • Developing – scores of 70 – 84% • Area of Concern – scores below 70% • Grading is based on a variety of assessments: teacher observation, checklists, paper and pencil, performance, rubrics, etc.

13. Homework • Homework provides practice of skills and responsibility and follow-through. • Homework is not graded, but checked for completion and effort. • Parents are asked to check homework at home for accuracy, and to help correct errors immediately.

14. Communication • Please stay in contact through • Email • Class web page • Phone • Weekly updates and news are sent through email. • Please check your child’s home folder each night for notices and updates, and returned work.

15. Nothing succeeds like success! Let’s look forward to a successful year in our shared goal: helping your child reach his or her potential!