Ms. Mottaz's Class: Happy Friday!

Happy Friday! I hope that this week has been a good one.

Runge Field Trip Chaperones-Background Checks

We took over all chaperone forms that were turned into us so far to Aslin today. We will be making another trip over to drop off forms before Spring Break as well.
If you would like to chaperone and haven't filled out the forms, please do so soon. If you need the forms, please let us know.
The cost of the background check is paid for by Columbia Public Schools.
You will receive an email once your background check has been completed and cleared. Please forward this email to me.

We reviewed our playground expectations this week as well as our recognize, refuse, report skills. Some students have struggled with KAHFOOTY (keep all hands, feet and other objects to yourself) lately. We discussed that touching (whether in a kind way such as a hug or in a hurtful way such as hitting) is allowed at RBE. We also discussed with students that games such as chase and tag are not allowed and this can often lead to hitting or kicking.
Mr. Smith has taught the 3 R's of recognize the problem, refuse the action they don't like, and report the incident to an adult. We discussed with the students the importance of reporting the incident to the supervising adult (teacher or classroom aide) and giving all the information to the adult. It is important that we know everything that happened during the situation so we know all sides of the story.
Please review our playground explectations at hom and the importance of using KAHFOOTY.

Award winning author, Loren Long, is coming to Rock Bridge on April 12!
In the Friday folder is an order form if you would like to purchase Loren Long books.
These books will be signed by Loren Long when he comes to RBE!

As second grade is coming to a close and third grade is right around the corner, you might be thinking about next. As teachers, we truly try to make the best decision for each child when placing students with classroom teachers. We take into consideration personality, classroom structure, teaching style and what students need to help them succeed.
If you would like to provide input regarding specific teacher characteristics you feel that would be beneficial for your student, you may request a class placement form from the RBE office. These forms are for characteristics and not specific teacher requests. All forms are due by April 15 to the RBE office.

This week students worked on asking questions before, during and after reading.
This skill helps them to think deeper about their book. It also helps to make connections throughout the book.

This week the students are working on a "delicious" writing activity. They are writing an opinion piece about their favorite type of ice cream. They not only have to support their opinion with 2 valid reasons (we discussed that "yummy" isn't a valid reason), but also include at least 1 counter argument about a different flavor of ice cream.

Your student brought home their Unit 7 test on Wednesday. Thank you to those who have signed and returned it, if you haven't had a chance to do that yet, please do so on Monday.
We started Unit 8 this week in math. This unit covers geometry and has a lot of vocabulary. Students have learned about sides, angles, vertices, parallel lines and right angles so far. Please review this vocabulary with your students.

We continued to learn about water temperature at different locations on Earth. The students also learned this week that there is no land at the North Pole, but it is actually a large ice cap. Even though there is no land at the North Pole, it is actually colder at the South Pole.

We wrapped up Unit 10 this week. We continue to practice the different spelling options for words in our Monster Book.

We will continue working on asking questions while we are reading. The students are learning this skill with Ms. Easter. They are then practicing this skill through either an independent reading book or a guided reading group. When your student is reading at home, be sure to ask them if they had any questions while they were reading.

We will be publishing our ice cream opinion next week. We have a sweet surprise for the students when they finish the writing.

We will continue working in Unit 8 next week. The students will learn the definition of a polygon and then have the opportunity to determine if a shape is or is not a polygon and explain their reasoning.

We will discuss how water temperatures based on the elevation of the land. We will also learn to identify if water is fresh or salt water.

We will start Unit 11 next week. This unit continues to work on vowel teams (or double vowels). We will focus on vowel teams that make the long e sound. These are "ee", "ea" and "ey." Please continue practicing the trick words at home also.

I hope that you have a wonderful weekend! Please let me know if you have any questions. :)

Ms. Mottaz