This week Mrs. Payne. our Instructional Coach, came in to talk with all the second graders about the strategies they can use when taking a test...in particular the MAP test. It was amazing to see that kids still though they had to beat other people and be the first done to get the best grade; that they were only going to see questions related to things they had already learned, not new information they had never seen before; and that they are competing against themselves, not other people in the class. Those misconceptions were cleared up, along with ways to handle problems or emotions that come up during testing (like if you can't figure something out, it you feel stressed, etc...) The kids worked on the math warm up page of MAP and also learned how to use the calculator if it should appear on their screen. Next Thursday they will do the same thing, but this time focus on the reading part of MAP.
In Science we learned how environments change over time and that animals, weather, nature and humans can create that change. We also learned how fossils are created and pretended to be "paleontologists" by extracting "fossils" from chocolate chip cookies!
In math, we practiced identifying coins (front and back) and the amount each coin is. Many kids are still struggling with counting money so if you can at home bring out that container of coins you've got lying around and get counting! One of the best ways to help with counting is to give a coin amount and have your child show 2 different ways to represent that amount. It can be quite the challenge! After the picture I will link some extra worksheets for practice should you like some over the long weekend for both coins and multiplication. (click on the picture for the link)