NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 30TH

Hi! HAPPY PUMPKIN DAY! We had such a fun-filled day! We finished writing our make-believe stories about our pumpkin characters, and we turned them into picture books! We estimated the circumference of our class pumpkin and how many seeds were in the pumpkin, and then we measured it, carved it, and counted the seeds to see how close our estimates were! While carving, we talked about how a jack-o-lantern can remind us of Jesus. We cut off the top and talked about how God wants us to open our minds up to him. We cleaned out all the "yucky stuff" and discussed how Jesus cleans us from our sins. We carved hearts for the eyes to remind us of how Jesus wants us to see others the way He sees them...with love. Then we carved a cross for the nose to remind us of how Jesus died on the cross for us. The mouth we carved into the shape of a fish to remind us to tell others about Jesus. After that, we carved rectangle ears to remind us of Bibles and to remind us to "listen to" God's Word. Finally, we put a candle inside to remind us that the Bible tells us to be a light to the world!

Before pumpkin day officially started, we had a wonderful time in chapel "kicking off" our Operation Christmas Child project. We will be doing this a little bit differently this year. We will be asking each child to send in 10 of a certain item...for example, someone may be asked to send in 10 toothbrushes...someone may be asked to send in 10 balls...someone may be asked to send in 10 bags of hard candy...etc. We are trying to make 34 boxes for each second grade classroom. On November 19th, we will be putting these boxes together in class (We would love to have some parent helpers!) after our Thanksgiving on the Lawn Celebration. It should be tons of fun! What a great way to share Jesus' love with others!

Here are some other things we learned this week:

• Reading - We read the story "Corduroy" and practiced the reading strategies Making Predictions and Making Inferences.


• Language Arts - We learned about quotation marks and practiced finding them in our reading and using them in our writing.


• Math - We practiced making numbers using ones, tens, and hundreds blocks; we practiced reading and writing number words up to 100; and we practiced reading graphs.


• Writing - We learned how to begin a story by using a "5 finger lead" and how to write a make-believe story with a beginning, middle, and end.


• Science - We learned about different types of soil.


• History - We reviewed map skills, focusing on continents, countries, and states, and we talked about the symbolism of the American Flag.


• Bible - We learned about how God set the Israelites apart, and how we are "set apart" to be different from the rest of the world even though we live in the world. We are special to God!

Here are just a few reminders:

• Our field trip to the Mahaffey Theater will be NEXT THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5TH. BE SURE TO PACK A LUNCH FOR YOUR CHILD THAT DAY AS WE WON'T BE BACK TO SCHOOL IN TIME TO EAT HOT LUNCH! THANKS!


• The Book Fair is next week! Mrs. Corsino's class will shop on THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5TH---THE SAME DAY AS THE FIELD TRIP---at 1:50 in the afternoon. Please be sure to send your child to school with money in a baggie or in an envelope labeled with your child's name that day!


• The flag project is due on NOVEMBER 11TH!


• We will be having our annual THANKSGIVING ON THE LAWN from 10-12 on THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19TH. An order form will be coming home in the Friday Folder! An adult meal will cost $8 and a child's meal $5. YUM!

During my personal devotion time this week, I've been reading in the Book of Galatians. One tiny little verse that "jumped out" at me was a portion of verse 6 which says, "...God does not judge by external appearances..." It fit in with what I've been teaching the children about kindness this week. Just because someone doesn't look pretty or handsome...maybe they're dirty...missing teeth...wearing old, torn-up clothes...doesn't mean they're not kind. And just because someone looks pretty or handsome...wearing expensive designer clothes or shoes... having perfect teeth and a beautiful smile...having a wonderful complexion...doesn't mean they are kind. We need to notice what's on the inside of people...listen to the things they say and watch the things they do. God sees our hearts and He notices what's on the inside!

Have FUN this weekend!

In Christ's Name,

Mrs. Corsino and Mrs. Lupia

PS Mrs. Corsino's Star Student next week will be FAITH.

Mrs. Lupia's will be ADRIANNA.

SECRET WORD: FLAG

NEWSLETTER - OCTOBER 23RD

Hi! We have had such a FANTASTIC week of FALL FUN! We just love our jobs! Where else can you come to work wearing a Doctor Seuss hat or a chicken on your head?!?!?! It was great to see the children dressed up each day to celebrate our school's homecoming! We hope to see many of you at tonight's game...GO MUSTANGS!!!!!

In addition to all the fun, we learned, learned, learned! Here are just a few highlights:

• Reading - We read a wonderful fictional selection called The Butterfly House. We talked about point of view and sequencing, and practiced lots of reading strategies, including Monitoring/Clarifying and Summarizing. We continued reading our rain forest chapter book in reading group, too, and we compared/contrasted some animals that we read about!



• Math - We practiced telling time to the minute, counting money past one dollar, and reading graphs. We learned about estimation and how to record numbers represented by tens and ones blocks.



• Science - We learned about the layers of the Earth and began learning about rocks. On Monday, the Young Scientists went to the Science Lab and observed minerals inside the rocks. Fun!



• Writing - We reviewed how to write a 5 paragraph essay, and we finished writing our habitat reports. Some of these are already graded and in this week's Friday Folder. If your child's isn't in there, it will be next week! They worked really hard on these!



• Language Arts - We reviewed comma usage, capitalization, and end punctuation. We learned about homonyms, too!



• We also had Firefighter Trese come and talk to us about fire safety, which the children really enjoyed!

Here are a few announcements/reminders:

• October 30th - PUMPKIN DAY! Your child may wear orange to school that day or anything with a pumpkin on it!



• The BOOK FAIR is coming up the week of November 3rd! MRS. CORSINO'S CLASS will preview the fair on THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3RD, and we will shop on THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5TH at 1:50 in the afternoon. Feel free to send your child to school with money to buy books that day!



• November 5th - Field trip to Mahaffey Theater - Be sure to pack your child a lunch that day as we won't be back in time for hot lunch!



• November 11th - Flag project due!!!



• Second grade is in charge of chapel in December. We will be doing a short Christmas Play. Sometime before Thanksgiving, we will let you know what your child's part is so that you can keep your eyes out for a costume!



• In February or March we will be celebrating Dr. Seuss' Birthday. The children will be allowed to dress up like the Cat in the Hat or another character from a Dr. Seuss book that day. We just wanted to give you a "heads up" about this so that you can be looking when the Halloween costumes go on sale!



• Please be sure to send your child's "book baggie" and bookmark to school each day! I check these most afternoons to see what the children are reading!



• Please be sure to practice addition and subtraction facts up to 18 with your child at home. Thanks!



• Bible - Moses and the 10 Commandments

We would really like to have the chance to conference with all of our families sometime in the next month 0r so. We are available after school (at 3:15) on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Please let me know a date and time you would like to come by writing a note in your child's agenda. (We can do these in 15 minute increments...so you could either come at 3:15, 3:30, or 3:45. If someone else has already requested the date and time that you ask for I will write a note suggesting a different time that's close to the one you requested.) Thanks!

For my personal devotion time this week, I have been reading in the Book of 2 Corinthians. A verse that spoke to me was Chapter 4 Verses 8-9 which says, "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." Even when we go through difficulties in our life, we have God on our side. Sometimes when we are experiencing something hard, it's the best time for others to see the work of Jesus in our lives!

Have a Fun Fall weekend with your sweeties!

In Christ's Name,

Mrs. Corsino and Mrs. Lupia

PS Next week's STAR STUDENT in Mrs. Corsino's class is SAMUEL.

Mrs. Lupia'S STAR STUDENT is MARIA.

***We are trying to start working on our end of the year memory books, but we are in need of a few items:

• clear page protectors (the size of a regular sheet of copy paper)



• solid colored scrapbook paper (the size of a regular sheet of copy paper)



• gift cards to Wal-Mart so that we can develop the pictures

Please feel free to send these items in as you are able! Thanks!

SECRET WORD: ROCKS

NEWSLETTER - OCTOBER 16TH

Hi! We've had another AMAZING week here at NCS! On Monday I (Mrs. Corsino) spent the day observing at Cross Bayou Elementary. It was great to see some new ideas! Mrs. Lupia kept all of our Young Scientists that day! They did many exciting activities, including playing a science game! Then, on Tuesday, I was home because my 8th grade son was sick with a fever. I am SO READY for all of the bugs to go away!!! :) We had a wonderful sub teach your children in my absence.

I was back on Wednesday, and both Second Grade classes spent the rest of the week learning, learning, learning! We began writing our reports about habitats. Thanks so much for doing the research at home. I am so proud of how well the children are doing with their writing! We will hopefully finish these reports next week.

Some other things we learned included:

• Reading - We read a fun story called "The Paper Crane," and we practiced using our reading strategies, focusing on Asking Questions.






• Math - We learned how to add 3 numbers, and we also learned how to use Number Rule Machines!






• Language Arts - We reviewed capitalization and punctuation rules.






• Social Studies - We talked about Christopher Columbus and sang "The Columbus Rap."






• Science - We continued to learn about animals and their habitats, as well as the Earth and its landforms.






• Bible - We've been learning about the 10 commandments.

During my personal devotion time this week, I finished reading the book of 1 Corinthians and started reading 2 Corinthians. I like 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verses 3-4, which says, "Praise be to the Lord and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." It's so true. If we look to God, He will comfort us when we are feeling sad or distressed, and we, knowing the Lord, can be a comfort to those around us. We all really do need each other in this crazy world we live in!

Here are some announcements and reminders:

Next week ( October 19-23) is our Homecoming Week! Dress up days will be as follows:

• Monday, 10/19 – Wear attire of your favorite sports team.






• Tuesday, 10/20 – Crazy hat and crazy socks day






• Wednesday, 10/21 – Mismatch Day






• Thursday, 10/22 – Mustang Roundup Day (Dress like a cowboy/cowgirl!)






• ALSO NEXT THURSDAY, we are asking each child to bring in a small pumpkin decorated to look like a character in a story. (See note in the Friday folder). We will be using this for a writing activity the following week.






• Friday, 10/23 – School Spirit Day – Wear red, white, and blue!
  






• Also NEXT FRIDAY, we are asking each child to bring in a teddy bear because we will be reading Courderoy the following week, so we want to "kick things off" with a Teddy Bear Picnic!

On Friday, October 30th we will be celebrating "Pumpkin Day" in second grade! We will spend some time thanking God for Autumn and for pumpkins! Your child may come to school dressed in orange that day, or wearing a shirt (or socks, or a pin, etc.) with a pumpkin on it. Let me know if you would be willing to send in a pumpkin treat (cookies, pumpkin bread, etc.) that day for the children to enjoy! I would also love to carve a pumpkin and bake the seeds, so if you would like to send in a big pumpkin for us, that would be wonderful! Please let me know by writing a note in your child's planner. Thanks!

November 5th – Field Trip to the Mahaffey Theater to see a fun show about science. The $6.00 to cover the cost of this trip will be due next Friday, 10/16. Thanks!

November 11th – Flag Project Due – More information is in the Friday Folder.

Have a WONDERFUL WEEKEND with your sweeties!

In Christ's Name,
Jen Corsino and Rachel Lupia

PS Next week, Mrs. Corsino's Star Student will be LAUREN!

Mrs. Lupia's Star Student will be KAMRYN.

*This year, we are asking that no dogs or cats be brought in for star student due to some pet allergies. It's hard to keep track of who's allergic to what, so it's just easier to leave our furry friends at home! Feel free to send in photos to share!

SECRET WORD: HABITAT

*Please be sure to practice addition and subtraction facts up to 18! (for example, 18-9, 17 + 3, etc.)

NEWSLETTER - OCTOBER 9

Hi! Happy Friday! It was so nice to see so many of you at our auction last night! It was a fun time, and I appreciate your love and support for our school more than I can say!

It's been another wonderful week of fun and learning here in second grade! We continued learning more about the different kinds of animals God created, and we made posters with pictures cut from magazines of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, and arthropods. We practiced our categorization skills, and the children did a fantastic job!

Here are some other things we learned:

• Reading - We read "The Elves and the Shoemaker" and practiced asking questions about the story and making connections, too! We also continued to read our chapter book about rain forests during reading group.
• Math - We learned how to tell time to the minute, we learned about fact families, and we learned that addition and subtraction are related!
• Language Arts - We reviewed nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, and compound words. We also learned about putting commas between items in a series. We learned what a thesaurus is, too, and practiced using one.
• Writing - We learned about invitations, practiced journaling, and learned how to write a 5 paragraph essay.
• Bible - We learned about how God parted the Red Sea!

Here are some announcements and reminders:

The week of October 19-23 is our Homecoming Week! Dress up days will be as follows:
Monday, 10/19 – Wear attire of your favorite sports team.
Tuesday, 10/20 – Crazy hat and crazy socks day
Wednesday, 10/21 – Mismatch Day
Thursday, 10/22 – Mustang Roundup Day (Dress like a cowboy/cowgirl!)
Friday, 10/23 – School Spirit Day – Wear red, white, and blue!

On Friday, October 30th we will be celebrating "Pumpkin Day" in second grade! We will spend some time thanking God for Autumn and for pumpkins! Your child may come to school dressed in orange that day, or wearing a shirt (or socks, or a pin, etc.) with a pumpkin on it. Let me know if you would be willing to send in a pumpkin treat (cookies, pumpkin bread, etc.) that day for the children to enjoy! I would also love to carve a pumpkin and bake the seeds, so if you would like to send in a big pumpkin for us, that would be wonderful! Please let me know by writing a note in your child's planner. Thanks!

November 5th – Field Trip to the Mahaffey Theater to see a fun show about science. Please send in $6.00 to cover the cost of this trip by next Friday, 10/16. Thanks!

November 11th – Flag Project Due – More information will come home soon about this!

For my personal devotion time this week, I've been continuing to read in the book of 1 Corinthians. A verse that I've been thinking about is Chapter 10 verse 31 which says, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." The part that jumped out at me was whatever you do. So when we're driving down the road late for work, we should be driving for the Lord...and when we're doing 10 loads of laundry on a Saturday, we should do it for the Lord...and when we're at the grocery store, we should be shopping for the Lord. WHATEVER we do, we should do it for the glory of God. It was a bit of a crazy week for me, and thinking about this really helped my attitude. After all, everything I'm doing, I'm doing for Jesus...and He deserves nothing but my best...with a smile!

Have a FANTASTIC weekend! Live for the Lord!

In Christ's Name,

Mrs. Corsino and Mrs. Lupia

PS Mrs. Corsino's Star Student next week will be GABRIEL.

Mrs. Lupia's Star Student will be CORI.

SECRET WORD: comma

NEWSLETTER - October 2nd

Hi! Happy October! We have had a FANTASTIC week here in 2nd grade! We spent some time talking about food chains and food webs, and the children made their own food chain puppets and "acted out" the food chain! Fun! We continued learning about different types of animals and habitats, reviewing mammals and reptiles and focusing on amphibians and the rain forest. We made some animals out of construction paper and categorized them, too! Here are some of the other things we learned:

• Language Arts - comma usage
• Math - using addition facts to help us subtract; relating addition and subtraction
• Bible - We continued learning about Moses, focusing on the last plague that God sent to Pharaoh, and we talked about the Passover Meal. Then, we had our very own Passover Celebration!
• Reading - We began a new unit about kindness and read a fun story called "Mushroom in the Rain." We practiced the reading strategies we have learned this year and talked about ways to be kind.
• Writing - We finished making our Jolly Postman books, and we learned how to write a thank-you note, too!
• We also made some cute pumpkins to hang on our October bulletin board!

Here are some announcements and reminders of upcoming events:

• Thursday, October 8th - Denim and Diamonds Auction - Please plan to attend this fun-filled evening!
• Friday, October 9th - HALF DAY and END OF THE GRADING PERIOD.
• October 19-23 - HOMECOMING WEEK! The children may come to school dressed-up in the following themes:

MONDAY - Dress in the attire of your favorite sports team

TUESDAY - Crazy hat and crazy socks day

WEDNESDAY - Mismatch Day (Wear things that clash!)

THURSDAY - Mustang round-up day (Wear Western clothes.)

FRIDAY - Wear red, white, and blue to show school spirit!

• November 5th - Field trip to the Mahaffey Theater - Remember to send in $6.00 with your child to cover the cost of the trip. Also, remember to pack a lunch that day!

This week during my personal devotions, I have been reading in the Book of 1 Corinthians. I was thinking about Chapter 4 verse 2 which says, "Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful." It got me thinking about the way you trust me with your sweeties...and I pray that I am proving faithful! I love them so very much and when I teach them I do it with all of my heart. Thank you so much for allowing me this privilege!

Have THE BEST weekend!

In Christ's Name,

:) Mrs. Corsino and Mrs. Lupia

Next week's Star Student in Mrs. Corsino's class will be MITCHELL.

Next week's Star Student in Mrs. Lupia's class will be LOGAN.

SECRET WORD: amphibian (Sorry... I forgot to include one last week so everyone got the half dollar!)