To my very first Wilson Creek 2nd graders,
I will miss all 22 of you so much! I am very proud of each and every one of you. It has been awesome to watch all of you grow incredible amounts this year. You are all hardworking, respectful, responsible, loving, intelligent 3rd graders now! I know you are ready to spread your wings off to Anna McDonald. You'll always hold a special place in my heart!
2nd Grade Inventors!
After researching many different inventors and learning about various inventions, the students each created their very own! They each created an invention name, told the class the problem their invention solved, and how the invention works. I was so impressed with the uniqueness of each one of them!
Bubbles & Chalk Day!
We are popping one balloon a day until the end of the school year, and inside each balloon there is an exciting spirit day/activity planned for the following day. On bubbles and chalk day all 2nd graders went outside and had a blast! I've never seen more bubbles being blown at once or more beautiful chalk artwork pictures!
Chocolate Kisses Experiment
To go along with our matter unit the students created hypotheses and tested 2 chocolate kisses. One chocolate kiss was placed in an open hand, and the other chocolate kiss was placed in a closed hand. This process was timed for 5 minutes. The majority of the students predicted that the kiss would melt in the closed hand and not melt at all/melt very little in the open hand.
They were spot on!
Helping the Earth!
The kids walked down the trail picking up loads of trash to help our Earth!
They had a great time, but they were VERY exhausted at the end!
Reader's Theater Performances
The students were in small groups practicing lines of different "fractured fairy tales". They did such a nice job changing their voices to fit the characters, acting out their parts, and using props to enhance their performances!
The Three Little Pigs' Mortar Houses
To go along with our matter unit in Science, the students tested sugar, cornstarch, baking soda, and flour each mixed with water to see which mixture would be the strongest to build a house for the three little pigs. Some groups decided flour would be the strongest, some chose sugar, and some even decided to mix the two together! The houses need to withstand the ultimate test after they spend the weekend drying... will they get blown down with a hair dryer?
The finished houses! None of them were blown down with the hair dryer!
Dodgeball Tournament!
All 7 of the second grade classes had a dodgeball tournament. We had so much fun! :)
100th Day of School Celebration!
The kids participated in over 20 different centers throughout the day that all had something to do with the number "100". They were determined to finish all of them before the end of the day!
Crystal Experiment
This was such a neat science experiment! The kids were amazed the next day when they saw their hardened crystal figurines! This is something that can be tried again at home.
What You'll Need:
-Pencil
-String
-Pipe cleaner
-Boiling water
-Borax
-Food coloring
-Stirring utensil
-Wide mouth glass jar
What You'll Need:
-Pencil
-String
-Pipe cleaner
-Boiling water
-Borax
-Food coloring
-Stirring utensil
-Wide mouth glass jar
Instructions:
- Grab a pipe cleaner and form it into any shape you want.
- Take the top of one of the pipe cleaners and attach another piece of string to it. Tie the opposite end to your pencil.
- Carefully fill the jar with boiling water.
- For each cup of water add three tablespoons of borax. Stir until the mixture is dissolved but don’t worry if some of the borax settles at the base of the jar.
- Add some food coloring if you'd like.
- Put the pipe cleaner into the jar so that the pencil is resting on the edge of the jar and the pipe cleaner shape is sitting freely in the borax solution. (Don't let it touch the bottom or sides of the glass!)
- Leave the pipe cleaner shape overnight and when you return in the morning you will find it covered in crystals!
U.S. Symbol Posters
The class enjoyed learning about many different U.S. symbols. The five symbols we dug deep into learning about were the Liberty Bell, the White House, the American flag, the Bald Eagle, and the Statue of Liberty. In the groups the kids put together posters with interesting facts that they learned to present to the class.
The finished products! :)
Earthquake Experiment
Each group of students had a pan of jello, marshmallows, and toothpicks. They were not given any instruction except to create a structure that could withstand an earthquake. It was awesome to see their little wheels turning, bouncing ideas off one another, and working together to create a strong toothpick building. All of their structures remained upright against the "earthquake"... (I came around and shook their pans to see if it would fall.)
GREAT JOB EVERYONE! :)
GREAT JOB EVERYONE! :)
Our Holiday Visitor!
2R was lucky to have a classroom visitor for the month of December! We received an elf from the North Pole! The class voted to name him "Olaf". He definitely was a mischievous elf, but we sure enjoyed having him around! :)
Classroom Party Fun!
Here are some photos from our holiday parties! The kids had a blast at all of them. A HUGE thank you again to the room parents for dedicating your time to help out and come up with fun activities for the class!