Where in the World is Miss Nelson?

The children in Room 403 are on the hunt for Miss Nelson!  In Social Studies, our second graders have been learning about maps and directions.  After reading the story, Miss Nelson is Missing, my students created a map of Miss Nelson's town with directions for finding her!

 First, the children were placed into groups and began planning
                                  their maps. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then, they were ready to start drawing their town maps!  They couldn't forget to include the compass rose!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, the finishing stages!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are the finished products! 

 

 

 

Group 1...

 

 

 

Group 2...

 

 

 

Group 3...

 

 

 

 

Group 4...

 

 

 

Each group had to write directions to find Miss Nelson.  Here is an example...

 

 

 

My children are absolutely amazing!  I love seeing their creativity and their ideas unfold with each project! 

 

I hope everyone has a wonderful break.  My children definitely deserve some time off with their families!  

 

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So Much to Share!

Ok, I have to put on the brakes and update everyone on what's been going on in room 403!  I want to go back to my last blog update to continue our activity on the comprehension skill, compare and contrast.  My children listened to two stories...My Lucky Day and The Wolf's Chicken Stew.  We completed a Venn Diagram comparing and contrasting the two characters, the wolf and the fox. 

Now it was time to use our Venn Diagram to complete a writing piece.  Since this was new to my children we completed this writing activity together.  This writing activity takes a lot of practice and a lot of guidance from me before the students can complete it independently.  My children and I wrote a two paragraph writing assignment comparing and contrasting these two characters.  Here is the final product...

 

My second graders did such a wonderful job! 

 

This is not the only writing assignment my second graders completed last week.  The students completed a How to Build a Scarecrow writing assignment using the writing process.  Let's take a look...

 

 

                     Prewriting using a graphic organizer.

 

Here, a student wrote his/her draft.  The student and I edited this draft. 

 

 

 

Here are some examples of the published writing!

 

 

 

The end result...a classroom full of authors! 

 

Two of my students participated in The Autauga Reading Council's 1st annual Reading Fair.  The students chose a favorite fiction book to represent on a tri-fold project board.  The projects were judged and displayed at the Chapter One Building in Prattville.  These students worked very hard and did such an amazing job.  I am SO proud of them!  Here are there projects below...

 

 

 

 From the book, Chrysanthemum...



 

 

From the book, Dinosaurs Before Dark (Magic Tree House Book Series)...

 

 

 

Isn't it amazing what children can do?!  I am amazed by them every day! 

 



Compare and Contrast

I hope everyone is having a GREAT week!  I know everyone is looking forward to the Veteran's Day Holiday on Monday.  Our second graders definitely deserve a rest!
This week we have been working on the comprehension skill, compare and contrast.  I am a huge fan of using children's literature to teach comprehension skills.  The children absolutely love listening to stories.  I used several children's books this week to teach compare and contrast.  We first listened to the story Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann. 

 

 

Next, we discussed how we can compare and contrast 2 characters from one book.  We used this Venn Diagram to record our answers.

 

 

We discussed how Officer Buckle and Gloria were different.  These answers went into the outer part of our circles.  Then, we discussed how these 2 characters were alike.  These answers were recorded where the circles looped each other. 
The children had their own Venn Diagrams where they recorded our answers too.  We were all very busy!

 

 

 

 

Oh, but we aren't finished with compare and contrast!  The next day, my children learned how to compare and contrast 2 characters from 2 different stories!  I chose the books, My Lucky Day, and
Wolf's Chicken Stew, to teach this skill.  These books are both written by Keiko Kasza.

 

 

  

 

     

 

The children loved these books, and it was so exciting to hear their answers.  They came up with similarities and differences that I hadn't even thought of!  What an awesome group of kids!

 

 

 

The children also completed their own Venn Diagrams, but you'll have to wait and see those next week!  I have an extension on this lesson planned, and I want to show these goodies all at once! 

 

There's one more item I want to share with you before I sign off for the night.  My children have worked very hard on Academic Vocabulary Notebooks.  What is academic vocabulary?  Well, it's the vocabulary used in textbooks, classrooms, and assessments.  It is very important for our children to understand academic vocabulary because it is the language used across all content areas.  The children are given an academic vocabulary word, then we discuss and write down its meaning.  The children then illustrate their academic vocabulary word.  Here are some examples taken from my children's Academic Vocabulary Notebooks...

 

 

 

My children work so hard every day!  I love looking over their work and reading their thoughts and ideas.  I learn something new from them every day!  Have a great week everybody!