Mrs. Ballnik's Second Grade

Classroom News from Mrs. Ballnik’s Class
My email is ballnic@dearbornschools.org
Friday, February 8, 2019
Important Days and Notes to Remember
I am still accepting completed math workbooks from the break, as they are finished. Thank-you for returning the report card envelopes to be used for the March report card.
Winter break- no school – Feb. 14 = ½ day go home 11:45 a.m., Feb. 15= no school, Feb. 18 = no school
School calendars are located under the District news at the Dearborn Website.
Gym on Monday- Please remember to wear tennis shoes and bendable clothes (not jeans).
PLANNER -Please bring them every day. Use it as a homework folder, or supply your own, if you choose.
FRIDAY SPELLING TESTS – Next week’s spelling words will be the same as this week’s spelling words and are vowel pairs, ow and ou. The spelling words are: clown, growl, round, crown, brown, howl, sound, house, loud, cloud. The Dolch words are: many, if, long, about, six.
Every Friday, there will be a spelling test. Please study the words and the spelling pattern. They will also get 5 words from the Dolch words (very common words in reading list) to practice. These will be written by your child in their planner on Mondays. Please practice every day with your child so that they will do well on the Friday Spelling test. I have added an extra credit word from the words I introduce in reading for the whole class. This word will be above grade level and randomly chosen from these 5 or 6 words. It is to challenge the student that gets a star on their spelling every week. I do not expect all students to study these very hard words. We will have a worksheet each week to expand vocabulary. These words are good to know and above the second grade spelling level. Your child will not be marked down if they miss the 16th word on the spelling test. See if your child knows what the extra credit 5-6 words are.
Spelling tests will be corrected and sent home on Monday. I don’t have time to correct and record them on Friday.
MATH We started subtracting in Lesson 11. We were bundling 10 and carrying it over into the ten’s column with pictures. For addition. Please go over and correct this on the homework, if possible. Please help your child add ones, add tens and add hundreds. Please read the homework helper and check the homework to help your child fix the wrong ones.
This new Eureka math program is challenging, so please be sure to go over the homework that is sent home each day for corrections with your child. There is an explanation sheet that comes with it. There are parent tips on my blog to access. We have a new computer site that goes along with the math called “Zearn”. Zearn login and passwords were glued into your child’s planner. Please use Zearn, if you have a computer available.
SCIENCE- We will guess a few mystery bags a day. Keep asking your child to describe things with properties using their 5 senses. Our unit is about Earth Science. This includes the landforms and bodies of water on the earth. We continue to work with the water cycle and how the earth changes slowly and quickly. Our cold, freezing rain, icy and snow days help us realize different kinds of weather and how it effects us.
SOCIAL STUDIES – A study guide came home for our social studies unit about government (citizens live together in a community). We will have our test next week. Please go over the study guide with your child and return it signed. Students will get a prize for bringing back a signed study guide. We are learning how to solve problems taking into individual rights and the common good. We are also learning about the 3 different sections of government.
READING- Read, Read, Read and don’t forget to ask the important comprehension questions. Please ask if you need another list of questions to ask your child about the story. Telling the characters, setting and what happened first, next, last are always questions to ask and determine if your child is understanding the story or just reading the words. The Book It calendar can be returned to school (signed by a parent) to earn a coupon for a free Pizza Hut mini pan pizza. A new February calendar should have come home.
Please be sure that your child reads something at least 30+ minutes per day. In addition, reading aloud to your child is important also. Please go to the beautiful Dearborn libraries to get additional books. I give new book bag books after I bring them back from the library located at the other end of the school. I sometimes just ask students that want to switch book bag books to come up (because it takes valuable reading time). I usually have reading groups switch books, to be sure that I get to everyone.
Please be sure that the Book It calendar for February reading is colored, as they read each day. Ask your child to show you and check that they color each day they read 30 minutes.
Remember, the easiest way to communicate with me is by email, ballnic@dearbornschools.org and look at my BLOG on the Dearborn schools website. Links to RAZKIDS and FRECKLE are there, also. I will send cards for the Zearn math practice in your child’s planner (or homework folder, if planner is missing).
MANY STUDENTS STILL NEED PENCILS AND A SHARPENER! MY ELECTRIC SHARPENER IS NOT WORKING WELL. STUDENTS STOP CLASS WHEN THEY ARE NOT PREPARED. I have given out many, many pencils. Thank-you to everyone that keeps their child with pencils. Thank-you to the parents that have sent in pencils and send in pencils next week.

VALENTINE’S DAY CELEBRATION _- Some of the morning on Thursday, February 14 will be our celebration. Please get 22 valentines (they sell them at the dollar store) or have your child make them for the class (I will give paper to students that ask). We make bags and share valentines. Students can send in treats (candy is ok for this one) or little presents, such as, pencils etc. to put in the bags. We usually ask volunteers to bring in cookies and juice packs. Please write a note, if you can send in something to eat for the party.
I am including a list of our student names, but students only need to sign their valentines. Students do not need to write the names of their classmates on their valentines.

Cheryl Ballnik