Welcome to Second Grade!
Week of May 18, 2026
- NO homework for the remainder of the year
- Please bring all library books back to school to return - all books are due May 15th
- Free Dress, Friday, May 22nd
- Last day of school, dismissal at 11:30, Friday, May 22nd
- Class Party, 10-11:15, Friday, May 22nd (Volunteers only)
- https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C45A4A828A1F9C34-63994300-2ndgrade#/
- Be sure to check your student's math and reading teacher's websites
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- If you would like to place a book order please click the link below:
- https://orders.scholastic.com/YPZ8Y
- Our class code is: YPZ8Y
Important Information:
Art is our rotation for STEAM this week! We have No specials on Friday for our specials rotation.
- Please send your student with a water bottle and a nut free snack daily.
- To avoid lost or broken student items please leave toys and personal items at home.
- Please label all student items with your student’s name & grade level.
- Dress for the weather!
UPCOMING EVENTS/DATES:
May
- Friday, 5/22, Dress of Choice and Last Day of School, Dismissal at 11:30 a.m.
Weekly Curriculum:
Reading (CKLA):
Mrs. Huffman's reading group: Skills Unit 6:
- End of Unit Assessments
- Novel Study - Charlotte's Web
- Homework and Spelling Test - NONE THIS WEEK
Math (Saxon)
Mrs. Huffman's math group:
- Assessment 21
- End of Year Assessment
- Homework - NONE THIS WEEK
Writing:
- Current Writing Topic: Informative Writing
Write about a topic, including a beginning and ending sentence, facts and examples.
relevant to the topic
Group similar information into paragraphs.
Use linking words such as also, another, and, etc. to connect ideas within a paragraph.
Knowledge Unit 8 - Insects
Lesson 1 Insects Everywhere!
Lesson 2 What Makes an Insect an Insect?
Lesson 3 Life Cycles of Insects
Lesson 4 Social Insects: Bees and Wasps
Lesson 5 Social Insects: Ants and Termites
Pausing Point
Lesson 6 Insects that Glow and Sing
Lesson 7 Armored Tanks of the Insect World
Lesson 8 Friend or Foe?
Domain Review and Assessment
Core Knowledge: Short Stories/Poetry
- Talk Iktomi Stories
- Beauty and the Beast
- Peter Pan
- Bed in Summer
- Tall Tales
- Buffalo Dusk
- Windy Nights
History: Japan
Geography:
- the location of Japan relative to continental Asia, including its position in relation to the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan (or East Sea)
- Japan: “land of the rising sun”
- Japan as an island nation that includes four main islands
- the locations of Mount Fuji and Tokyo
- modern cities as sites of industry and business
Culture:
- Japanese flag
- example of a traditional craft: origami
- example of traditional clothing: kimono
- Japanese literature (“The Tongue-Cut Sparrow”), art (The Great Wave off Kanagawa), and architecture (Himeji Castle) as reflections of Japanese beliefs and practices
What students need to know:
- Plant Needs
- Plants have body parts (roots, stems, leaves) to survive and grow.
- Plants are living organisms and typically grow in fixed locations.
- Though there are many different types of plants, they have common needs (air, water, minerals, light).
- Plant Diversity
- Plants are diverse in size, structure, and ecological needs.
- Plants live in environments to which they are suited; those environments also differ:
- Deciduous forests (oak trees)
- Tropical forests (vines, epiphytes)
- Meadows and prairies (grasses)
- Deserts (cacti)
- Tundra (plants of small size)
- Ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams
- Oceans are home to less than a dozen known species of plants.
- Many plant habitats change in cycles over time—seasons—and plants are adapted to survive during those changes.
- Animal Needs
- Adult plants and animals reproduce.
- Many kinds of animal parents take care of their offspring until the offspring become mature enough to care for themselves.
- Animal Diversity
- Animals are diverse in size, shape, and ecological needs.
- Animals vary in their structure.
- Invertebrates: without backbones (snails, insects, coral)
- Vertebrates: with backbones (mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians)
- Animals live in environments to which they are suited; those environments differ:
- Deciduous forests (squirrels, raccoons)
- Tropical forests (moles, worms)
- Meadows and prairies (prairie dogs)
- Deserts (lizards, scorpions)
- Tundra (arctic fox, polar bears)
- Ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams (fish, oysters)
- Oceans (There are numerous species of animals in the world’s oceans, such as sea stars and whales.)
- Ecosystems: Plant and Animal Relationships
- Many plants and animals live in a specific habitat.
- Organisms that share a given space affect each other.
- Animals depend on plants for food and shelter.
- Plants depend on animals (for example, pollination, seed dispersal).
- There are also groups of living things that are neither plants nor animals (fungi, algae, bacteria).
STEAM SCHEDULE 10:00-10:45am
*WEEKLY ROTATION*
SPECIALS SCHEDULE: 1:30-2:15pm
*DAILY ROTATION*
Parent Resources:

DIBELS Reading Assessment: is administered three times a year and also continuously monitored through out. You will be receiving the results in Thursday folders after each benchmark.
- Want to know more about DIBELS click here: Parents Guide to Dibels
- Want to know more about NWEA click here: Family Guide To NWEA & Family Tool Kit for NWEA
- EPIC books: https://www.getepic.com/sign-in ( Lots of great online books to read we will use this in class.)
- Reading Rockets: Reading Rockets Articles & Tips for Reading at Home
- Vooks: Animated Video Books for Students to Read Along With
- Phillip S Miller Library: Library Parent Resources
- Storyline Online: Storyline Read Alouds
- Prodigy: Prodigy Practice for Math & Reading (another student favorite)
- Boddle: Boddle Math (students LOVE this)
- Prodigy: Prodigy Practice for Math & Reading (another student favorite)
- Xtra Math: https://home.xtramath.org/ (great for fact practice)
- Khan Academy:Kahn Academy ( great for math support with videos that explain skills and concepts)
GROWTH MINDSET:
Growth mindset is the idea that, with effort, it's possible to increase intelligence levels, talents, and abilities. Students who demonstrate a growth mindset believe their abilities develop over time, tend to seek out opportunities to gain new knowledge and broaden their skills, and do not typically shy away from challenges (Kazakoff & Mitchell, 2017).
Students with a growth mindset believe that intelligence can be developed. These students focus on learning over just looking smart, see effort as the key to success, and thrive in the face of a challenge.
Students with a fixed mindset believe that people are born with a certain amount of intelligence, and they can’t do much to change that. These students focus on looking smart over learning, see effort as a sign of low ability, and wilt in the face of a challenge.