Welcome to November! The weather has been quirky lately, but it seems the chillier weather is setting in. Sending in your child with clothing layers is a great idea so that they are comfortable throughout the day!
- We enjoyed the most beautiful day on Tuesday as we walked to the Arlington Heights Police Department. The weather was perfect, the children were very well behaved and we learned so much from Officer Hajek about this very important community service! There are new photos added in our "November" slideshow! Thanks to Mrs. Hiskes, Mrs. Giannopoulos, and Mrs. O'Sullivan for making the trip with us!
- We have completed our unit on the history of Arlington Heights! Up next we will begin our unit on Citizenship. To complement this unit, the children will have the opportunity to work on a challenging research project that they can complete at home. In a nutshell, they will choose a landmark, study it, and present their learning to the class! Look for the details about this project to come home next week.
- Thank you for reviewing your conference times and sending back those purple forms! 14 out of my 22 families requested an evening time slot. I did my very best to accommodate all of your requests, and I so appreciate your flexibility. It’s hard to believe our first conference is just around the corner!
Spelling
After practicing long a words spelled /ai/ and /ay/ this week, next week the children will be focusing on words with the long /i/ sound!
Reading
We had a nonfiction theme this week, as our whole group reading selection was entitled, “A Trip to the Emergency Room.” We learned that stories are written in a sequential order that makes it easy for the reader to understand and follow. Often, “order” words are used to highlight the steps, including first, next and last. The children practiced summarizing the text in this way: First, a sick person goes to the Emergency Room and is checked in by an Admissions Worker. Next, a nurse collects more information about your injury. Then, an orderly will come and take you to have tests run. Last, a doctor reviews the results and informs you about your situation! You can see that our comprehension skill of the week was sequencing! The children also worked to pull out key information from the text when summarizing, instead of simply repeating everything they can remember! Sometimes, less is more! Our vocabulary words included: broken, informs, personal, serious, and heal. We also learned about homophones, which are words that sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings! We practiced defining the meaning of several homophone pairs and using each one in a sentence. The children also learned about different types of resources that can be found in a library, including: newspapers, globes, almanacs, atlases, card catalogs (often electronic now!) and even telephone directories!
Grammar
The children learned about proper nouns this week! With solid practice of nouns already under our belts, the children were quickly able to identify the specific names of nouns! We also worked on identifying abbreviations such as Dr., Mr., Mrs., and Ms., and noticed that there is a period at the end of each one.
Math
Using a geoboard and rubber bands, the children made, described, compared and drew a variety of shapes. We also learned how to gather data as we counted the pockets on our clothing during class. The children recorded their data with tally marks in a table and drew a corresponding bar graph. After sorting our data, we found the “middle” number of pockets in the data set, also known as the median. It was 2!
Social Studies:
As a part of our Arlington Heights Unit, the children learned about a special landmark in our town. They researched it and then created a piece of original artwork to go along with it- based on the inspiration of our guest artist, Jack Musich. Finally, the children recorded their information into a podcast. I am told that the product of all of our hard work will soon be running on the Arlington Heights cable channel. Keep an eye out for it.... Prepare to be impressed!
Over the weekend, keep an eye out as you pass the intersection of Arlington Heights Road and Northwest Highway for the statue of William Dunton. He is looking out at the railroad tracks that he brought through our town! We talked about how important the railroad was to the development of Arlington Heights, and how it made our town a very convenient place to live. Aside from the Miner, Dunton, and Kennicott families that we have previously discussed, we have also studied several other important early settlers in our town, including: Frederick Muller (he owned a soda pop factory!), the Meyer Family (they built Meyer’s Park and Pond!), and the Klehm family (they had a nursery full of plants and donated many of our town’s trees!) The children looked at how transportation has developed and changed over the course of the last 120 years, from the covered wagon, to the horse and buggy, street car, early locomotive, up to our modern transportation methods of today. We also learned why Arlington Heights was such a desireable place to settle: it is near the train, close to the city of Chicago, it has fertile soil, and there is a good climate for farming! We also learned that “Heights” was added to our name, because our town is approximately 106 feet higher than Chicago! We discussed the benefits of living on elevated land. We also learned the towns that surround our town on all sides, ask your child to tell you what they are.... The children took their test today!
Up next: Our unit on Citizenship! The children have already been assigned a president to study! They worked on a webquest in the LMC this afternoon identifying notable facts about him.
Special Notes:
*Two of our classmates, Logan and Eric, have a very exciting football game tomorrow! They are playing a championship game at Melas Park at 12:45. If you have a free hour and would like to cheer on our classmates, head on over! They are currently undefeated. Good luck, Cowboys!
*We welcomed our newest friend to the classroom this week. His name is Azan Khan, and the children have been so eager to show him whatever he may need to know during the day. Welcome to Dryden, Azan and family!
* Jack Musich, the Arlington Heights Artist who inspired our children in their town landmark projects, will be showcasing/selling his artwork at an upcoming art festival, on Sunday 11/14 1:00-5:00pm in Art Around the Town: Artists Studio Tour, sponsored by the Arlington Heights Historical Society. http://www.ahmuseum.org/Events/art.htm His artwork is truly full of interest. Check it out!
Coming Soon:
November 9: Photo Retakes
November 10: Visit from Mayor Mulder
November 11: No School, Veteran's Day
November 12: Dads and Donuts
November 17: 2nd Grade Musical
November 19: Progress Reports go home
November 22/23: Parent/Teacher Conferences
November 24-29: No School for Students
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