OOPS!

2nde graders will be going to the Nautre Center on TUESDAY November 15. 3rd graders will still be going on Friday Novemeber 19. Sorry for the mix-up!

Sorry that it's been a while!

I was reminded by a student that I haven't put anything new on the classroom blog for a while! Sorry! Hopefully you have checked out the videos I added. Next week should be lots of fun with visits the the Nature Center (2nd graders on Wed. and 3rd graders on Fri) and the Turkey Trot on Friday. We are doing a food drive all week long, so please send in food items or cash donations for the food bank!

Math Graphing Practice Quiz

This is an in class activity on Friday to practice graphing. Students can retake the quiz at home after Friday for extra practice. We'll be having a graphing test next week before UEA.

http://csmith2.myutips.org/

Nature Center Visit About Bats

Visit this link to see our class video Nature Center Visit About Bats

A Few Reminders!

Thursday Sept 23- 2nd graders have a quiz over their addresses and phone numbers. Make sure you know yours! (3rd grade, it wouldn't hurt you to review yours)
Friday Sept 24- Field Trip to the Nature Center
Friday Sept 24- Liberty Carnival 4-7pm

Math Review Link

We'll be doing this in class Wednesday as a review for our pattern tests. If you want extra practice, you can redo it at home AFTER Wednesday! :)


http://www.myutips.org/~csmith2/

Two new videos!

We wrote about what we would do as president. Look at the future leaders of our country!

Future Presidents of the United States

http://animoto.com/play/8LTWiWcB48ssQW43ug3SdA

We were talking about contour lines and we drew our shoes. See if you can guess the shoe's owner as you look at them :)

Shoe Art

http://animoto.com/play/n6I4asyp2mzIdSt1QkWPPg

Puppets

Today we made our third puppet, Clara who helps us clarify during reading. Click on the link or scroll to the bottom of the blog to see the video!

http://animoto.com/play/cfcnpIoBZAzNg4y9OeD3NQ

Carinval Silent Auction Basket

Our class has been assigned the theme "Make Mom's Day" for carnival. Please donate any items that moms would love. Some ideas that the students came up with today were:

• hair items
• lotion
• pictures
• jewelry
• a thousand dollars
• a trip to Hawaii

Obviously the PTA is not expecting items such as the last two :) but if you have anything that you could donate, it would be greatly appreciated. The baskets will be on display at the school carnival September 24 where you can bid for them.

Thanks for all your support!

Correcting papers

You may see some papers being sent home with "Please correct and return" of "Finish and return" written on them. These are in class assignments that the student didn't finish, didn't read directions, or was missing a key concept. They can be fixed/finished at home and then I will adjust their grade accordingly. If there is something that they don't understand, they are welcome to come before or after school and I can work on it with them. If you have questions or concerns, please let me know!
Thanks!

Meet Our Class

Check out our first video! Click on the link below:

Meet Our Class

Me Books

Below are a few pages to give you ideas for your Me Book. My book will also be available on Back to School night for parents to see. Each page should include a visual (picture, magazine clipping, drawing, stickers, etc.) and a few sentences to help us get to know the student. The sentences can be hand written or typed. Thanks for working hard together on these books. Remember they aren't dure until September 9, so take your time on making them!

School Starts Tomorrow!

Are you ready to start our new year together! I'm excited to meet you and begin our journey as a class tomorrow! See you bright and early!
~Miss Smith

Get to know your teacher

I hope that you are continuing to enjoy summer! I've really liked the time I've spent at the pool and our summer rain showers the past week. I'm looking forward to a weekend in Park City with my family :)

I thought that I would tell a little about myself for those of you in my class next year!

• Favorite colors: Probably green and red but they change often
• Favorite ice cream: Cookies and Mint
• Color of my toothbrush: White and teal
• Interesting Liberty Fact: I went to Liberty when I was in grades 4-6. I loved it so much, I came back to teach :)
• What I enjoy doing: Reading, hiking, exploring technology, going to plays and musicals, baking, spending time with friends and family, and always trying new things. This summer I rode a mechanical bull and drove a dirt bike! Both were awesome!
• Teaching: This will be my fifth year as a teacher! I taught third grade for 2 years at Stansbury Elementary, third grade for 2 years at Liberty and now I get a split class with second and third graders. I'm super excited!
• BYU or UofU: NEITHER! I'm a proud Utah State Aggie Fan! I received my bachelor's degree and recently my masters degree from USU and love it!
• Five words to describe me: Thoughtful, loving, organized, patient, and sometimes silly.

I'd love to get to know you as well! Post a comment on the blog and write a few things about yourself!

Back To School Supplies

Dear Parents,

The time has come to start thinking about the upcoming school year. I often have parents wondering what we need in our classroom, so I've created this list of supplies. PLEASE KNOW THAT EVERYTHING YOUR CHILD NEEDS WILL BE PROVIDED FOR THEM! But, if you wish to buy items at back to school sales, here are some suggestions:

Student Supplies
~Wooden pencils (These work the best, especially with learning cursive!)
~2-3 glue sticks
~Erasers (Most students prefer the pencil topper erasers)
~2 folders of your choosing: 1 for homework and one to keep at school
~ 1" black sturdy black binder (not the flimsy kinds) for writing.

Classroom Supplies
~Clorox or Lysol antibacterial wipes (We go through a lot of these to keep the room clean, especially during the cold season)
~Kleenex
~Post-it notes (any size)
~Ziploc Bags (Sandwich, quart and gallon size)
~Alphabet stickers/stencils

The “Do Not” Brings
I like to keep distractions in the classroom to a minimum. If I send home something with your child, it is because it is a distraction and should not be brought back to school. These items should be left at home: toys, mechanical pencils, pens, and hand held pencil sharpeners that do not have a lid. If you have questions, please feel free to contact me by e-mail csmith2@murrayschools.org

Again, remember this is a list of ideas and suggestions. Everything that your child needs for school will be provided.

I’m looking forward to a great year and getting to know you and your child better!

Thanks,
Miss Smith

Summer Vacation!

I hope that you are all enjoying your summer vacation. I know that I am! Hopefully you are finding some ways to beat the heat! Some of my favorite activities this summer have been:

Going to San Francisco

Reading some incredible books

4th of July parade and fireworks

Swimming at the pool

Spending time with my family

Decorating my new house

I can't wait to hear about what you've been doing!

Summer Reading!

I hope that you are enjoying your summer vacation as much as I am! I'm sure that you are doing some summer reading, and here are some programs that will reward you for your efforts. Each is a little different, so click on the link for details. HAPPY READING!

Murray Library http://murray.lib.ut.us/Children.html

Read Today http://www.readtoday.com/

Borders http://media.bordersstores.com/pdf/summerreading.pdf

Barnes and Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/summerreading/

Scholastic http://www.scholastic.com/summerreading/index.htm

Read and Ride at the Salt Lake County Fair http://www.countyfair.slco.org/pdf/ReadAndWinReadAndRide.pdf

Salt Lake County Libraries http://www.saltlakesummerreading.com/

Tulip Festival

Click on this link to see the Thanksgiving Point Tulip Video!
Tulip Festival

Comics

If you like reading comics, maybe you'll like creating your own! Go to this link

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/comic/

and have fun!

Tell me what you are doing for spring break!

Post your comments about what you are doing during spring break. I hope that you're having fun!

Hawk Watch

Square Dancing Videos

Dr. Seuss' Birthday

Click on the link to see our Dr. Seuss video!
Dr. Seuss' Birthday

Measurement Activities

Measuring to the nearest centimeter
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/length_strength2_centi/
Measuring to the nearest inch
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/length_strength2_inches/
Measuring in centimeters and inches (includes different levels)
http://www.funbrain.com/cgi-bin/meas.cgi?A1=s&A2=0&A3=3

Recipe for Oobleck!

We read the story Bartholomew and the Oobleck and played with our own oobleck in honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday. If you'd like to make your own oobleck at home, here's the recipe:

1 1/2 c. corn starch

1 c. water

Food coloring (optional)

Fun with Words

Do you like the new word creation on our blog?
Create your own at
http://www.wordle.net/
Bigger words are those which have been repeated frequently. For example, if you want "fun" in larger letters, write the word fun three or more times in your creation. See what you can come up with!

Also, if there are other words you think we should include in our word creation, let me know!

There's a lot going on this week, even though it is a short one. Here are some reminders!

• Dr. Seuss day is Tuesday Mar. 2. We’ll have all sorts of reading activities centered around him. If you’d like to bring a Dr. Seuss book to read/share on Tues., you can. It is optional.
• PTA book fair is this week. Our class will be going to a preview on Tues. and the book fair is open Wed. and Thurs. They are having buy one get one free, so it’s a great time to get some books!
• Del Sol Fundraiser orders are due Mar. 4. There will be a booth at parent/teacher conferences where you can purchase items as well. Please support our school.
• Parent/teacher conferences are Wednesday and Thursday evening. You should have received a note last week. If you need to change your time, please let me know ASAP.
• NO SCHOOL FRIDAY MARCH 5!! Homework and spelling tests will be on Thursday!

Murray Mile

Animoto.com

I received an e-mail with the attached document in case any parents are interested in Love and Logic Classes:

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0Afg6oFhaAYqXZGNzcjY4cHFfNTdoZDR2NmRyNQ&hl=en

It's that time of year when all sorts of germs, colds, and sicknesses are going around. Right now in our classroom, we are out of Kleenex and also disinfecting wipes (Clorox or Lysol are a few of the brands I know). If you wouldn't mind donating some to our classroom to keep us all healthy, it would be greatly appreciated!

Community Council Fund Raiser

We had an awesome assembly by Del Sol today showing us some of their products. Students will be getting an order form tomorrow to start selling to family and friends. Money for this fundraiser goes toward things such as: tokens, ice cream sunday parties, field trips, assemblies and other activities and items for our school.

ORDERS ARE DUE ON MARCH 4th!

Practice Test for Math

This is a practice test that we will be doing Wednesday in class:

Click on this link:
http://csmith2.myutips.org/

Wait for instructions

FYI

Breakfast book club is this week! Bring your book, poster, and paper to school on Friday Feb. 5 at 7:45.

Please bring in pennies to donate to the charity. There is more information outside the office. We are trying to beat Mrs. Dean's class by bringing in the most change each week. Pennies are worth 1 point, anything silver is worth 5 points, and a dollar is worth 20 points. It's for a great cause and a wonderful way to show love for others this time of year!

Be practicing your multiplication. You should know 0,1,2,3,4,5, and 10 by now. We'll be working on the others soon!

Valentine's Envelopes

We'll be making our Valentine envelopes during our party on Feb. 12, so you do not need to make a box at home! I will be sending home a list of names soon for you to write Valentine's if you wish.

Also, we will be collecting box tops the end of Feb. Please send in any you have, trimmed please!

FIELD TRIP!

We will be going to the Nature Center tomorrow! Our bus leaves at 10:30am and we'll return around 1:15pm. Don't forget to bring your lunch from home or if you ordered a sack lunch from school, we'll get it in the morning! I can't wait to learn about Native Americans.

January Big Ideas

Here are some of thing things that we will be studying this month:

• Reading: Making inferences, compare and contrast, drawing conclusions
• Language arts; Verbs
• Writing: Persuasive Book Reviews
• Social Studies: Native Americans
• Science: Heat and Light
• Math: Geometry, using pictures and models to solve story problems, multliplication
• We'll also continue to work on cursive, writing our own stories, and rocket math.

It should be a great month!

Happy 2010

Welcome back and happy 2010! I hope that you had a wonderful break! I know that I did, which makes me a little behind on the class blog. Sorry!

The big thing to remember is that we are going to the nature center next week, TUESDAY JAN 12. We'll be eating lunch there and learning about Native Americans.

I'm so glad to see you all and word hard together for the rest of this school year!