Another Short Week!

Good morning 2A! 

Here comes another short week with a field trip, too!

Field Trip: Our field trip to the Pioneer Living History Museum is on Thursday, March 29! We will be leaving at 8:15 am and returning around 2:00. Please be sure your child brings the following: 

• Sack lunch (everything should be able to be thrown out after eating) 

• Disposable water bottle 

• Wear tennis shoes and sunblock 

• Hat & sunglasses (optional)

Here is what's coming up this week in 2A:

Literature: Sarah, Plain and Tall, has come to an end! We will review important events we read about. Please send your child to school with a copy of our last novel: Little House in the Big Woods. Don't forget that book reports are due April 9th!

Writing and Grammar: We will continue to practice all parts of speech by classifying sentences and apply these skills to our writing. Our story for next week is from Moominland Midwinter by Tove Jeansson. We will focus on the use of commas in direct quotes and how adverbs modify verbs.

Spalding Words:
Monday: importance, important, carried, carry, loss, fortune, empire, mayor, wait, degree
Tuesday: prison, engine, visit, guest, guessed, guess, department, obtain, family, favor
Wednesday: REVIEW *No School Friday, Test Thursday

Math: We are officially completing our unit over time and will take our unit assessment on Wednesday. Be sure to keep an out for a study guide coming home on Tuesday to review with your child before the test. Thank you!

History: Your child will learn about early jobs in the wild west this week: ranchers, cowboys, and miners. We will also talk about the negative impact westward expansion had on the Native American tribes living in those territories. As we wrap up this unit, we will travel to the Pioneer Living History Museum! 

Science: Our exploration of magnets will continue as we investigate magnetic fields through using iron filings. We will also explore how magnets attract and repel.

Warmest,

Mr. High

4th Quarter - Here We Come!

Dear 2A Families,

I hope you all had a wonderful Spring Break! 

Here is what's coming up: 

Field Trip Time!
Our field trip to the Pioneer Living History Museum is on Thursday, March 29! We will be leaving at 8:15 am and returning around 2:00. Be on the lookout for a permission slip coming home in your child's homework folder. If you are interested in being a chaperone this fun field trip, please email me by by Friday, March 23rd. Please be sure your child brings the following: 

• Sack lunch (everything should be able to be thrown out after eating)

• Disposable water bottle

• Wear tennis shoes and sunblock

• Hat & sunglasses (optional)

Literature: After Spring Break we will read Chapters 7-9 of Sarah, Plain and Tall. We will talk about what it means to be homesick and learn what the word "ayuh" means. We'll also find out why Sarah wants to learn to drive the wagon.

Writing and Grammar: We will jump back into paragraph writing when we return from Spring Break!

Spalding Words This Week (20 words only due to No School on 3/19):
Tuesday: enjoy, awful, awesome, awe, usual, usually, complaint, complained, complain, auto
Wednesday: vacation, beautiful, beauty, flight, travel, rapid, repair, troubling, trouble, entrance

Math: Telling time will continue! See if your child can tell time on a digital clock at home. We've been practicing time after the hour and time before the hour.

Science: We will start a new unit about MAGNETS! See if your child can notice the many ways magnets are used at home.

History: Upon our return from Spring Break, we will learn about why and how pioneers traveled west. Your child will discuss the Oregon Trail, California gold rush, and the Transcontinental Railroad. Ask your child how the Pony Express worked. Our Pioneers are gearing up for their field trip to the Pioneer Living History Museum on March 29!

Warmest, 

Mr. High

It's almost Spring!

Dear 2A,

Can you believe it's almost the end of the 3rd quarter? It feels like this year is flying by! We had quite a busy week this week, but it was so worth it and also a lot of fun!

Here is what's coming up this last week before Spring Break:

Literature: What has your child been sharing with you about Sarah, Plain and Tall? Next week we will learn more about the characters through reading chapters 4-6. We are working on context clues with new vocabulary words, and we will write an advertisement (WANTED Ad) for someone we would love to have in our own life. This assignment is sure to be quite interesting :-).

Writing and Grammar: We will read an excerpt from The Elephant's Child and practice classifying sentences.

Spelling Words Next Week:Monday: holiday, holy, knee, lemon, lying, lie, nails, needle, nobody, oarTuesday: palace, penny, regular, repeats, sailor, sentence, shining, shine, surface, sweeping, sweepsWednesday: thief, waist, waste, waiting, weary (weak), writing, writer, write, spend 

Math: We begin a new unit this week on time! We will begin to tell time to each 5 minute interval, the 
quarter and half hour, and we will also discuss the importance of being able to tell time. "Better late than never!"

Science: We are finishing up our simple machines unit with a closer look at some machines that your child might be familiar with around your neighborhood! If they have a bicycle, skateboard, or other ways to get around, have them point out the parts they have learned in class. They are all connected! 

History: Your children took home a study guide for the War of 1812 on Friday. Please help them study for Monday's test. We will be starting a new unit on Wednesday! Welcome to the Wild West! We will begin our study of Americans moving west. Ask your pioneer about different ways people traveled during this time.

Side note: Book Reports are due Monday! We will also assign new chapter books and books next week. :)

Sincerely,

Mr. High

March, here we come!

Dear 2A,

We have MAP testing on Monday! Please make sure your child has working ear buds as the test is read aloud to them. Also a great breakfast a good nights rest on Sunday evening will help them do their best on their test! Thank you for your help with this.

Recitations of The Preamble to the Constitution will take place next week. Please ask your child to recite this for you on the car ride home!

Literature: We have concluded our reading of The Cricket in Times Square. Please send in a copy of Sarah, Plain and Tall for your child to read. We will dive into new vocabulary, like what is a hearthstone, and what it means to be feisty. We will also discuss why Sarah feels like a move is necessary, and why Pa places an advertisement in the newspaper! Be sure to ask your literature experts for the answers to these questions.

Spalding Words Next Week:
Monday: None, MAP Testing
Tuesday: don't = do not, Thursday, Saturday, admission, canoe, captain, cautious, caution, cellar
Wednesday: covered, creature, curtain, declared, declare, distance, distant, explain, floated, ghost

Writing and Grammar: We are learning about subject-verb agreement in sentences, solidifying our understanding of possessive pronouns, and reading a story called The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks!

Math: This week we conclude our study of fractions after comparing and naming fractions in part of a group and we will take our Unit 10 Cumulative test next Friday. 

Science: We will be delving deeper into our mechanical mysteries this week with some hands on experiments! Have your child identify different wedges, inclined planes, and screws while out and about!

History: We're continuing to learn about the War of 1812 this week. Ask your child why Dolley Madison was an influential person in history.

Warmest,

Mr. High

Happy President's Day Weekend!

Dear 2A,

Welcome back to a new week! I hope you were all able to enjoy some time with your families over the long weekend. :) 

Here is what's coming up this week in 2A:

Poetry: Please start practicing The Preamble to the Constitution at home. 

Writing and Grammar: We will read an excerpt from Little Women. Possessive Pronouns will be added to our Question & Answer Flow!

Literature: Our adventure with The Cricket in Times Square will come to an end next week. We have LOVED reading this beautiful novel!

Spalding: There will be NO Spalding words next week. Instead we will introduce CURSIVE(your children are SO excited for this), practice it in class, and send home cursive writing practice for homework. We will also be sending home a parent packet about cursive writing so you can add that to your resources :-).

Math: We are going to begin working with fractions. We will focus on fractions up to 1/12. Feel free to bring your mathematician into the kitchen to help divide various items into equal quarters, thirds, halves, or whatever you need!

History: Scholars will dive into a brief study of, what some refer to as the second war of independence: the War of 1812. Ask your child to identify key points for the Merchant's and War Hawk's views.

Science: We have finished digesting our Human Body Unit and are tinkering onto our Simple Machines Unit! Can your child reel in the robotics around them at home or in their community? We are excited to make mechanical discoveries with this interactive unit! 

Warmest, 

Mr. High

Good Morning!

Dear 2A,

I hope you all had an incredible long weekend and feel rested and ready for this week!

Highlights for This Week:

• Tuesday 2/13: Science test over the human body. Here is the answer key for our study guide. The study guide was intended to contain most of the notes from our entire 6 week unit. I promise the test will be much more simple to answer! We were hoping for more retelling of what they learned about for the study guide. Answers may vary on the balanced diet plan.

• Wednesday 2/14: Great Hearts Day! We have reserved this special day to focus on the virtue of friendship and celebrate the traits that make a great-hearted student. We are planning interactive and fun activities centered around these topics, and time will be set aside for students to create hand-made Great Hearts Day cards for their classmates. Archway Arete strives to cultivate a rich, academic environment rooted in the classical tradition. This many times requires popular culture to be left at the door. On that note, students will not be permitted to bring store-bought valentines, candy, or gifts to school. Thank you for partnering with us. 

This week in 2A:
Poetry: Your child will be graded on their recitation of Smart by Shel Silverstein. We will introduce our new recitation: The Preamble to the Constitution!

Literature: We will read Chapters 11-13 of The Cricket in Times Square. 

Writing and Grammar: Direct quotations will continue to be our focus next week as we read a story called The Hare that Ran Away. We will be revisiting friendly letters next week when writing a card to a secret classmate for Great Hearts Day! Subject pronouns will also be reviewed in our question and answer flow.

Spalding Words Next Week:Monday: direction, direct, appear, liberty, enough, fact, board, September, station, attendTuesday: public, music, picnic, picnicking, friends, friend, during, endure, police, untilWednesday: truly, true, whole, hole, address, request, raise, August, struck, getting, get

Math:We are wrapping up our unit on money and will be introduced to our new unit on fractions beginning Thursday. Keep an eye out for a study guide (Units 1-9 Cumulative Test B) coming home on Tuesday to go over with your child to prepare for the upcoming test on Thursday. 

Science: We will take our test over the Human Body on Tuesday. Please check your child's folder for a copy of the study guide! It's also linked above.

History: Your child will be bringing home a study guide on Monday for the Constitution test. Due to Great Hearts Day, the test will be on Friday! I'll be sure to send you a master copy too :-)!

Warmest,

Mr. High

Happy Sunday!

Good evening!

Thank you so much to everyone who was a part of Academic Field Day! Mrs. Gerhart and I want to thank you all for your continued support and help making it such a great day. :) 

This week we are beginning Math and Reading groups! If you are available to come in, we would love to have you join us. Thank you so much to our class Mom's, Mrs. Miller and Mrs. Weigle, for putting this together!

A Day for Friendship - Wednesday, February 14th is Great Hearts Day! We have reserved this special day to focus on the virtue of friendship and celebrate the traits that make a great-hearted student. Teachers are planning interactive and fun activities centered around these topics, and time will be set aside for students to create hand-made Great Hearts Day cards for their classmates. Archway Arete strives to cultivate a rich, academic environment rooted in the classical tradition. This, many times, requires popular culture to be left at the door. On that note, students will not be permitted to bring store-bought valentines, candy, or gifts to school. Thank you for partnering with us. 


Literature: The Cricket in Times Square will continue through reading Chapters 9 & 10. Ask your child about Mario's trip to Chinatown and the fire at the newsstand.

Writing and Grammar: We will write final copies for our paragraph about our two favorite colors! We will also introduce subject pronouns to our question and answer flow when classifying sentences.

Spalding Words Next Week: 20 words due to no school on 2/9Monday: throw, threw, personal, everything, rate, chief, perfect, second, slide, fartherTuesday: duty, intend, company, quite, quit, quiet, none, knew, know, remain

Science: Next week we will review the functions of our body systems and learn ways we can help make sure that our body systems continue to run smoothly so we can stay healthy. We will also learn a new word to our vocabulary: calories! We will spend time reviewing ALL of the concepts we have learned in our Human Body Unit through playing a fun review game. A study guide will be sent home with your child on Thursday night. We encourage you to read through it and ask your child to retell some of the things they learned. We will have a test over the Human Body the following week (Week of February 12th)!

History: We are continuing our discussion of the Constitution. This week your children will be talking about why many people wanted a Bill of Rights added to the Constitution. They will also learn who James Madison was and why he is called "The Father of the Constitution." Ask your scholar to tell you the first three words of the Constitution. We will be reviewing at the end of the week. Look for a study guide on Friday.

Math: We are going to continue our study in money and will begin to practice adding and subtracting and doing our best to make sense of it all! 

Warmest,

Mr. High