Happy New Year! It was wonderful to have all of our favorite second graders back at school. Happy Birthday to Leila and Yuan!
Winter Quarter is a busy one and we have lots of events planned, including Mystery Readers, Whooping Crane Arrival Celebration, Valentine's Day, Lunar New Year, a field trip to see the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater and a trip to the Indiana Dunes to learn about how maple sugar is made. We will send you more details about these events as they approach.
WINTER WEATHER TIPS
Just a reminder that we go outside almost everyday and we want your child to be comfortable outside. Here are a few tips:
REMINDER ABOUT ARRIVAL
Please make sure your child arrives at the classroom by 8:30 a.m. We being our Morning Meeting at 8:40 and children benefit from a few minutes to put their belongings away, greet friends and settle in. Sometimes, children will have a brief activity to do before Morning Meeting begins and if they arrive late, they will miss it. Thanks for your cooperation.
THE SCIENCE OF SNOW
This quarter we will be studying snow, winter weather and the water cycle. We encourage children to read, watch or listen to the weather forecast each day and bring in any new weather words they learn. In just one week, Chicago experienced many kinds of precipitation: snow, rain, and freezing fog! During our study, will learn about the different kinds of snow crystals, make “snow catchers," learn about symmetry and practice reading a thermometer. We will be wishing for more snow so we can use the snow catchers and conduct some other snow experiments. In the meantime, children will enjoy making virtual paper snowflakes at Make-A-Flake (for use on a computer) or the free My Flake app. Be sure to check out the Gallery for many the new snow photos. We had a wonderful time making snowmen on Friday before the rain arrived.
WHOOPING CRANE PARTY
In honor of the whooping cranes arrival at the winter home in Florida, we will celebrate with a whooping crane dance party. A date has not been set yet, but as you wait for details please help your second grader think about what black, white and red clothing your he/she may have at home to wear for the celebration. We will invite everyone to dress in the colors of the whooping cranes! This can include hats too.
PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES
An online sign was emailed to you (via Sign Up Genius) last week. Please sign up for a time slot if you haven't already. We are looking forward to meeting with you on January 31st and February 10th. Progress Reports will be available online toward the end of February or beginning of March. You can access the link to this online sign up page under the FOR PARENTS page of this website.
MYSTERY READERS
You also should have received an email from Sign Up Genius inviting you to be a Mystery Reader. There are dates and times available from now until the end of the year. Here are the details:
Shhh! It’s a secret! Sign up to be a Mystery Reader. Mystery Readers are parents, family members or other special people in our school community who volunteer to read one short picture book of their choice to the class during a 15 minute block of time. You must keep it a secret from the kids (including your own!). Our Lower School librarians are wonderful resources if you need a recommendation and you can check the book out in Ms. Harrison’s name. We’ll keep it in the classroom for further reading & exploration. We’d also like you to share with us how reading is important in your job or daily life.
In order to ensure that all families have the chance to participate, each family is allowed one turn/time slot per child. Please contact Ms. Harrison if you have any questions.
Finally, when you arrive to be a Mystery Reader, please do not wait in the hallway outside of the classroom or you may be spotted! Come up to the classroom just before your scheduled time so we can keep your identity a secret. Thanks for your cooperation.
You can access the link to this online sign up page under the FOR PARENTS page of this website.
Be sure to ask your child about our latest read aloud, introduced by Ms. Atiya. It's called Heidi Heckelbeck Has A Secret by Wendy Coven. This is the first book in a series and we hope the kids will want to read more!
Enjoy your week!
Winter Quarter is a busy one and we have lots of events planned, including Mystery Readers, Whooping Crane Arrival Celebration, Valentine's Day, Lunar New Year, a field trip to see the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater and a trip to the Indiana Dunes to learn about how maple sugar is made. We will send you more details about these events as they approach.
WINTER WEATHER TIPS
Just a reminder that we go outside almost everyday and we want your child to be comfortable outside. Here are a few tips:
- We recommend that children keep a stick of lip balm in their backpacks for the rest of the season so they can avoid frequent visits to the nurse for chapped lips.
- Send a extra pair of warm, dry socks to keep in your child’s cubby in case his/her feet get wet during recess.
- Make sure your child has other shoes to wear during the day. Boots get too warm and often need time to dry out after recess. Your child needs P.E. shoes Monday-Thursday.
- Is your child having a hard time carrying all his/her winter gear back and forth? We recommend that each child use a large durable canvas or vinyl bag (like the eco-bags used for grocery shopping) to take snow boots, pants, hats, and mittens/gloves back and forth from home to school. This way they have everything in one place and don’t have to go searching. This will help the children become more independent and responsible for their belongings as well. Please label the bag and everything in it with your child’s name. If your child loses something, please check the ESH Lost and Found - the closet across from the Security Desk in the Lobby.
REMINDER ABOUT ARRIVAL
Please make sure your child arrives at the classroom by 8:30 a.m. We being our Morning Meeting at 8:40 and children benefit from a few minutes to put their belongings away, greet friends and settle in. Sometimes, children will have a brief activity to do before Morning Meeting begins and if they arrive late, they will miss it. Thanks for your cooperation.
THE SCIENCE OF SNOW
This quarter we will be studying snow, winter weather and the water cycle. We encourage children to read, watch or listen to the weather forecast each day and bring in any new weather words they learn. In just one week, Chicago experienced many kinds of precipitation: snow, rain, and freezing fog! During our study, will learn about the different kinds of snow crystals, make “snow catchers," learn about symmetry and practice reading a thermometer. We will be wishing for more snow so we can use the snow catchers and conduct some other snow experiments. In the meantime, children will enjoy making virtual paper snowflakes at Make-A-Flake (for use on a computer) or the free My Flake app. Be sure to check out the Gallery for many the new snow photos. We had a wonderful time making snowmen on Friday before the rain arrived.
WHOOPING CRANE PARTY
In honor of the whooping cranes arrival at the winter home in Florida, we will celebrate with a whooping crane dance party. A date has not been set yet, but as you wait for details please help your second grader think about what black, white and red clothing your he/she may have at home to wear for the celebration. We will invite everyone to dress in the colors of the whooping cranes! This can include hats too.
PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES
An online sign was emailed to you (via Sign Up Genius) last week. Please sign up for a time slot if you haven't already. We are looking forward to meeting with you on January 31st and February 10th. Progress Reports will be available online toward the end of February or beginning of March. You can access the link to this online sign up page under the FOR PARENTS page of this website.
MYSTERY READERS
You also should have received an email from Sign Up Genius inviting you to be a Mystery Reader. There are dates and times available from now until the end of the year. Here are the details:
Shhh! It’s a secret! Sign up to be a Mystery Reader. Mystery Readers are parents, family members or other special people in our school community who volunteer to read one short picture book of their choice to the class during a 15 minute block of time. You must keep it a secret from the kids (including your own!). Our Lower School librarians are wonderful resources if you need a recommendation and you can check the book out in Ms. Harrison’s name. We’ll keep it in the classroom for further reading & exploration. We’d also like you to share with us how reading is important in your job or daily life.
In order to ensure that all families have the chance to participate, each family is allowed one turn/time slot per child. Please contact Ms. Harrison if you have any questions.
Finally, when you arrive to be a Mystery Reader, please do not wait in the hallway outside of the classroom or you may be spotted! Come up to the classroom just before your scheduled time so we can keep your identity a secret. Thanks for your cooperation.
You can access the link to this online sign up page under the FOR PARENTS page of this website.
Be sure to ask your child about our latest read aloud, introduced by Ms. Atiya. It's called Heidi Heckelbeck Has A Secret by Wendy Coven. This is the first book in a series and we hope the kids will want to read more!
Enjoy your week!