Feb 1st-7th

Second grade is beginning to introduce our Asia Unit

Last Friday we watched a video on a traditional Chinese New Year (this year it's February 10th), Miss Stark read us a story about the New Year and we made red lanterns with Chinese characters on it to decorate our classroom.

In China red, corresponding with fire, symbolizes good fortune and joy. Red is found everywhere during Chinese New Year and other holidays and family gatherings. 

We will really kick off our Asia theme starting next week with a week full of Chinese New Year activities.

We ask that the students wear RED to school on Monday to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

On Monday, we made Valentines to give to the children of Children's Mercy Hospital. The cards will be given to a branch of 1st National Bank of Leawood, KS and will be disributed to the children at the downtown location from 2:30-3:30 on Valentine's Day. 

Valentine Card Shower

In Science we got to do TWO experiments that had to do with energy. One on light energy and one on heat energy.

Tuesday's experiment: We learned the that there are three types of material that light energy comes in contact with. 

Opaque: an object that lets no light pass through {black paper, aluminum foil}

Translucent:  an object that lets little light pass through {paper towel, napkin}

Transparent: Object that allows all light to pass through {glass, gallon plastic bag}

Georgia and Sloane testing out the paper plate

Making our hypothesis about what we think will  or will not allow light

Testing out the aluminum foil

Wednesday's experiment: We talked about heat energy; how we use it and how the Earth uses it. We did an experiment with tea bags using hot and cold water.

Conclusion: we learned that when the object {water} is hot, the molecules move faster; when it's cold it slows down. That is why the hot water absorbed the tea bag flavor faster.

Molly seeing the difference between hot and cold

Maeve and Connor adding the tea bags

Kathryn and Anna seeing whats

Ethan writing down his observations

In math, we had a fun change from our regrouping and in honor of the 100th day of school being last week, in groups we sorted and graphed 100 SKITTLES! 

We sorted them by color, counted, and put our findings in a bar graph, then we gathered as a class to see what the highest and lowest color was. In both classes we found GREEN was the highest and poor PURPLE was the lowest.

Joshua, Ethan, and Atem sorting the colors

Tempting not to eat right away!

Of course we got to enjoy a tasty, rainbow treat afterwards!

Asian Feast

The Second Grade celebrated the end of our Asia unit with a yummy feast of Chinese food. Some children loved it and were very excited, others were a little hesitant to try something new. Overall, it was fun day of celebrating with friends. The children were excited to use chopsticks and kneel while eating at their red boxes as tables--and we can't forget to mention how they love to finish off with fortune cookies!!

What's Cooking?

Our favorite chef around St. Paul's, Mrs. Goodrich, graciously offered to help our 2nd graders make egg rolls in preparation of their upcoming Asia Feast! We couldn't refuse this kind offer and it made for a great Friday afternoon before Spring Break. The children were divided into small groups. The first group got to chop vegetables with knives and they were even willing to chop an onion! One student in that group tried shrimp for the very first time. Then, other groups that followed made the egg rolls by prepping the filling and rolling them onto the wrap. They thought the "glue" (corn starch and water) was fun to use as they sealed the rolls. For some students, it took a few tries before they mastered the roll. We plan to freeze the egg rolls over break, and serve at our feast. The last group, was so helpful that they even stayed to clean up. I am sure Mrs. Goodrich enjoyed being with these second graders. I know our classes had so much fun and probably learned a thing or two about cooking in the kitchen.

GIANT pandas!!

The second grade enjoyed creating their own panda bear during a theme project time on Friday!

Message to Parents....

A Note about the International Festival – Thursday March 10^th

The International Festival is quickly approaching and the children are gearing up for this extremely rich collaborative event that allows all ECC and Primary students to share with each other all that they have learned. Please note that the festival is for the students only. This event involves over 200 students; therefore we do not have space for all of our parents and special friends. It is often upsetting, not to mention unfair to the children when some parents attend and others are left to wonder why their parents could not attend. For this reason, we kindly ask that you focus your attention on experiencing this event through conversations with your children at home. We know they will have so much to tell you and we will be sure to post lots of pictures on our blog. We really appreciate your understanding.

We love Panda Bears!

In Rotations on Wednesday, the second graders read about Giant Pandas. Giant pandas are one of the most loved animals in the world. There is only one place on Earth you will find them--the forest covered mountains of western CHINA! Through our Asia unit, we are learning about these amazing bears. The students were excited to learn new facts and share what they already knew. The concerned students discussed why pandas are in danger and what can be done to help them. We also learned the word "panda" means bamboo eater. The students will complete the lessons on panda bears by doing their first typed research report in the following weeks.

Chinese Brush Painting

Teaching Artist Valda Hsu came to second grade to introduce our students to the tools and techniques of Chinese brush and ink painting. The second graders were very eager to try this type of art and showed great interest in what Ms. Hsu was teaching. She showed them the importance of their hand placement and the value of painting in the Chinese culture. The students also learned to make a signature stamp, known as chop, to sign their work as Chinese painters do. It was an awesome learning experience!

Asia "Fantasia"

The second graders had a "fantastic" time painting fans on Friday. They learned how many Japanese and Chinese dancers use fans as a prop in their dance routines. The children loved designing their own unique fan for display in our classrooms.

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Happy Chinese New Year!

It is 2011, the year of the Rabbit. This is a festival in China that is celebrated for many days. With each new year, the Chinese add a year to their age. The second graders learned about the meaning of the Chinese New Year and how it is a special time for the Chinese. It is the greatest celebration of all! In second grade, we celebrated with a snack of oranges, which is a color of joy and brings good luck. Also, we made a craft lantern with Chinese symbols and characters. The lanterns are on display in the primary commons!