The Weber Weekly

I hope you all had a very enjoyable spring break!  To get back into the swing of things and ensure a successful remainder of the school year, we are reviewing rules and routines this week.  I want all of my students to be prepared for third grade, not only academically, but behaviorally as well.  The expectations have been set and the children are working hard to stay on green for the next 34 days.  I introduced the class to a new "yellow" policy today and I want to explain it to all of you as well.  It's simple:  if a child has a yellow (or orange or red) day, he/she will be filling out a form indicating the reason for the yellow and the actions that can be changed for the future.  I will read over what your child has written and we will both sign it.  Then your son/daughter will bring the form home for you to look over and sign as well.  It's very important that you discuss the behavior with your child, sign the form, and return it back to school.  If your child forgets the paper, he/she will be missing recess the following school day.  My hope is that this new policy will help everyone stay on track for the last two months of second grade. 

We are starting a new math unit this week:  MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!  We will be counting coins, showing different ways to make the same amount, estimating prices, and adding totals/making change.  You can help your son/daughter prepare for this unit by counting coins in a piggy bank, paying for things at the store, or having him/her add up things from the weekly grocery ads. 

Our shared reading focus this week is character traits and character development over time.  We will be exploring the main character in a famous Jack Ezra Keats book, A Letter to Amy.  We're also starting a new chapter book this week for read aloud, The Mouse and the Motorcycle. 

In writing we've been looking at various authors that have written persuasive texts and the similarities between them.  The children will be drafting another persuasive essay this week. 

Over the next several weeks, we will be researching different animal habitats in science.  The children will explore the arctic, desert, alpine tundra, ocean, grassland, and rainforest. 

I'm sure you've heard by now that we won our tenth ribbon for our whole-class behavior.  The children voted once again for a PJ and Stuffed Buddy Day.  On Wednesday, April 11th, the kids can wear their jammies and bring one small, stuffed buddy to school.  Please make sure the stuffed animal is small enough to fit on top of a desk and that it doesn't make any noise.  The children are so excited and looking forward to Wednesday.  I'm very proud of all of them!

On Thursday we will be having another School Spirit Day - - Go Green!  (Dress in green clothes.)

Your child recently brought home information for the Joliet Slammers reading program.  He/she has the opportunity to earn a ticket to a baseball game simply by reading four "just-right" books.  Each base equals one book and your child needs to reach home plate.  The books your child needs to read should be just right for him/her, so for some kids that means four chapter books. 

Tomorrow night, April 10th, there is a PTO meeting at 6:00 in the Media Center. 

I will be out of the building tomorrow for district training with the rest of the second grade team.  If you need to get in touch with me, I will be checking email periodically and returning phone calls Wednesday.  Please encourage your child to have a GREEN DAY tomorrow by showing respect to our substitute. 

And now I leave you with pictures of my Easter Bunny...

I'm baaaaaack! :)

I'm so excited to be back in the classroom!  I want to apologize for my delay in response to emails and phone calls.  It's been tough getting back into the routine of things and getting caught up on everything while I was on maternity leave.  Thank you all for your patience.  I'm looking forward to a fun-filled remainder of the year! 

Baby Weber

Hi everyone!  I'm very pleased to announce that Keaton Joseph Weber made his appearance into the world on January 25th at 7:05 pm.  He was 7 lbs. 14 oz. and 21 inches long.  It was a very long labor and delivery (22 hours), but so worth it.  We are all doing extremely well and couldn't be happier.  As much as I miss all of you, I am really enjoying my time at home with him.  I can't believe he is already 15 days old!!  Thank you all for your kind words, thoughts, and well wishes as I embark on this wonderful new journey.  And now, what you've all been waiting for, PICTURES: 

Happy New Year!

I hope all of you had a very restful and enjoyable break.  I'm looking forward to going back to school on Monday and seeing all the kids.  I can't wait to hear about their holiday and get 3rd quarter started.  Don't forget that the December homework calendar is due on Monday.  I hope your child was able to get a good head start on the January calendar as well. 

During this time of year we start to run low on many classroom supplies.  If you would like to donate anything to replenish our supplies, we would greatly appreciate it.  We are in need of the following items:

• hand sanitizer
• Clorox disinfecting wipes
• tape (Scotch & masking)
• glue sticks
• paper towels

Please check with your child as well to see if there are any desk supplies that he/she may need.

I am going to be sending home a few things during our first week back.  One thing that you can be on the lookout for is a new class directory.  I noticed I need to make several changes to it, as we've had kids move and new students that have come in.  I'm also going to send home a cursive letter reference page.  I can't wait to start cursive writing with the kids when we return!  You can be watching for the January book order as well.  Finally, I know Valentine's Day is still a month away, but I want to send home a list of names for your child to use while writing his/her cards.  I will send that by the end of the week.  We're going to have a very busy first week back; I hope your child is well-rested and ready to get back in the swing of things!   

Winter Party

Our winter party was so much fun!!  Big thanks to Mrs. Stratton for all of her hard work in organizing the party.  Thanks also to the other volunteers:  Mrs. Ortiz-Jones, Mrs. Deal, Mrs. Blair, and Mrs. McMillin.  We couldn't have done it without you!

The Weber Weekly

The stockings hanging in our classroom are ADORABLE!!  I wish we could celebrate Christmas all year long!  It's so fun being a teacher in the month of December; especially to some completely innocent second graders.  I absolutely L-O-V-E being a teacher!!

I would like to give a special thanks to Nicole's mom, Mrs. Ortiz-Jones for being our Mystery Reader this week.  She read a cute holiday story called I've Seen Santa and even donated a copy to our classroom library!  She also brought candy canes for the kiddos as well as her favorite version of The Night Before Christmas.  The kids had a real treat on Tuesday!

We've continued to work really hard at our Geometry unit this week.  The kids should now be secure with plane & 3D shapes, parallel & non-parallel lines, and area & perimeter.  They will be taking their outcome assessment on geometry next week.

Reading was so much FUN this week!  The kids had a blast learning about the various types of humor that authors use in their writing such as alliteration, puns, and personification.

Our nonfiction writing is off to a great start.  Everyone has chosen an animal, written "I wonder" questions, and began researching their topic.  They're finding out really interesting facts about their animals!

Our suitcases are packed, our passports are ready, and we've boarded the Polar Express!  The train is taking us to many places around the world to learn how different countries celebrate Christmas.

We wrote another recipe and created "Rudie the Reindeer" this week.  Thanks to the families of Nicole, Matthew, and Zoe for being our Snazzy Snack Shoppers this month.  The reindeer turned out really cute!

 We're going to have a busy week next week.  Please take note of the following important days:

• December 20th is the last day to donate non-perishable food for the Student Council Food Drive.
• If you're donating items for our stockings, please send in your goodies by Wednesday.
• Thursday is the Winter Party!  Everyone is encouraged to get into the festive spirit by wearing a Santa hat, Reindeer antlers, or a pretty holiday bow.  I can't wait to spend this last day before break with my class!
• There is no school on Friday, December 23rd.  School will resume after break on Monday, January 9th. 

Stockings

The stockings were hung in our classroom with care...

And if you’d like to send something to stuff them with, we’d really love it!  Each child in our class has a stocking hanging, waiting for our winter party.  If you are able to send 26 small “somethings” for the stockings, we would appreciate it!  You can send whatever you’d like, but some ideas could include: holiday stickers, pencils, erasers, small toys, notepads, etc.  Our party will be on Thursday, December 22^nd.  I would like to have the stockings ready to go that morning, so if you could send in your goodies on or before Wednesday, December 21^st, that would be really great.  Thanks for helping to make this a special treat for the kiddos!  Happy Holidays!!    

Baby Update

Many of you have been asking lately about the arrival of Baby Weber, so I thought I'd post an update.  My due date is January 16th, so I have about six weeks to go.  My plan is to come back the week after winter break (January 9th) and teach that whole week.  I'm due the following Monday, so we'll just have to see how it goes.  I know some of you are concerned about your child while I'm gone, but I want to assure you that everything will be fine.  Miss Hampton (my student teacher) will be taking my maternity leave and I am confident she will do a great job with the class.  Her and I keep in touch on a daily basis and I will be able to stay informed of the class happenings through her.  I'm only going to be out about six weeks, so I'm looking to come back at the end of February or early March.  I hope you will keep my family in your thoughts while I'm out; I'm really looking forward to this new, wonderful adventure!

My amazing mother-in-law threw us a baby shower this past weekend.  (My family lives in Southern Illinois, so we had to have two separate showers.)  Here are a couple of pictures from the special day:

 My husband, Zach, (on the left) and his family - - the wonderful hosts

 The beautiful room where we had the shower :) 

 What an amazing cake!! 

 My mother-in-law put a lot of effort into the small details; the centerpieces were "flowers" made out of washcloths, booties, and onesies.  How creative!! 

 She even made the baby his very own Christmas tree, complete with Cardinals and Packers ornaments!  It looks so adorable in his nursery :) 

Such a beautiful baby shower - - I'm so blessed!  

The Weber Weekly

We had such a fun week back after break!  The kids were so cute in their PJ's Thursday.  Thanks to everyone for participating in this school-wide Spirit Day.

We have been busily writing letters to the soldiers this week.  The kids reviewed all the steps of a friendly letter, brainstormed ideas, and then drafted a letter.  After editing, they wrote a final copy on fancy stationary in their best second grade handwriting.  We're going to send the letters to the troops overseas for the holidays.  Some of their ideas included things such as, "You're very brave for fighting for our country.";  "I wish you could come home for Christmas.  I'm sorry you won't be able to see your family."; and "Thank you for protecting our freedom."  They really poured their hearts out into these letters and I know the troops will be happy to read them.  I have such a caring group of second graders this year!  :)

 
We started a Geometry unit in math this week.  The kids are becoming experts at plane shapes and solid figures.  They're really expanding their math vocabulary with words such as face, edge, and vertex.  We'll continue geometry next week as well.

Our shared reading focus for the week was story elements.  We read a big book called His Majesty the King and identified the different parts of the book including main characters, setting, and plot.  The kids then learned how to use a graphic organizer as an aid to create a summary of the book.

We had a blast in science this week!  We began by reading a Dr. Seuess book called Bartholomew and the Oobleck.  In the book, a gooey green substance called Oobleck fell from the sky and wrecked havoc in the kingdom.  The kids had to make predictions about the Oobleck by using their five senses.  They were shocked to learn during the experiment that Oobleck has characteristics of both solids and liquids - - it acts like a liquid when being poured, but like a solid when a force is acting on it.  You can grab it and then suddenly it will ooze right out of your hands!!  Check out our pictures from the experiment:

We concluded our science unit by making a delicious experiment that shows all three states of matter - - Root Beer Floats!  Here are some more pictures: 

Thanks again for donating items to make these experiments a success!!

We have a lot of upcoming events at Grand Prairie that I'd like to highlight:

December 6th - - PTO Meeting at 6 pm in the Media Center

December 8th - - Market Day pick-up at 4:45 in the gym

December 8th - - Scholastic Book Order due (GREAT holiday gift idea!)

December 12th - - Holiday Gift Shop (Be on the lookout for more information)

December 22nd - - Winter Parties 

Mitten Tree:  In the "Spirit of the Season", 5th Grade Student Council needs your help to continue to give to those less fortunate.  December 1st – 15th you can donate new or gently used mittens, gloves, hats, and scarves for the “Mitten Tree”.  We will display the donations on our mitten tree, along with your child’s name and class.  (Please be sure to include the student’s name with your donation.)  Student Council will also be collecting new and gently used boots and coats.  These items will be donated to Grand Prairie families in need.  If we have any surplus items, they will be donated to a local shelter.  Give from your heart and help keep our Grand Prairie community and beyond warm this season!!

Food Drive:  Student Council will continue to collect non-perishable food until December 20th.  All food will be distributed to Grand Prairie families this holiday season.  

Is your family in need of help this holiday season?  It's the time of year for holiday giving!  Grand Prairie will be able to assist families who might be less fortunate during this year’s holiday season.  If you are in need of specific items such as winter coats, clothes, or boots for your children or would appreciate food for your holiday table, please contact our school social worker, Bianca Dassinger at 815-436-7000 ext. 208 or email at bdassing@psd202.org.  You may also write her a note and leave it at the front office.  You can be assured that all names will be kept confidential.  Please be aware that we might not be able to fulfill everyone’s wishes, but we will try our best to put something under the tree for each request.