Tim Mikkola ( Second Grade )

Week 16 - May 18, 2010

2010-05-18T01:14:00.000-07:00

Today...

Today we reviewed our spelling words for the week, practiced our dictated questions and created our own story boards. We are going to practice using the story boards this week to plan out our Main idea, details and closing sentences. Next week we will begin writing our own short stories!

Week 16 - May 16, 2010

2010-05-15T23:26:00.000-07:00

This week...

Last week was shortened due to the Open House so we will continue this week with our lessons on pararaph construction. We will be doing the same vocabulary words as last week and we will have the test this Thursday.

This week we are going to focus on the parts of a paragraph and creating our own paragraphs.

The parts of a paragraph

The parts of a paragraph are the main idea (topic sentence), the detail sentences and the conclusion sentence.

The main idea - The main idea or "topic sentence" tells us what the paragraph is going to be about. It is usually at the beginning of the paragraph and defines what the rest of the paragraph will be about.

The detail sentences - These sentences describe in more detail the main idea. They tell us different facts about the topic usually answering a Who, what, where, when, wh, or how question.

The conclusion sentence - This sentence or sentences ends the paragraph and tells the reader what the writers thoughts are on the main idea of the paragraph.

--> Main idea - My birthday is in September.

--> Detail 1) - There will be a big party with lots of cake.
--> Detail 2) - I will have all of my friends there.
--> Detail 3) - We will play lots of games and I will open my presents.

--> conclusion - My birthday will be very fun.

2010-05-05T06:16:00.000-07:00

Today...

Today was a good day! The students did a lot of hard work and earned several games! We worked on reading comprehension, identifying the subject and predicate of a sentence and can/can't phrases. We will have our vocabulary test tomorrow on the 10 words that were posted (and handed out in class) on Sunday. The students also need to bring in as many water bottles as they can for the water fight! (The water fight is scheduled to be next week if all the classes have enough water, so BRING THE WATER!!)

Week 14 - May 2, 2010

2010-05-03T01:31:00.000-07:00

This week...

This week we are going to learn about sentence structure. The subject and the predicate of the sentence, subject/verb agreement and sentence tenses. We will have 10 new vocabulary words and the test this Thursday. The test will incorporate spelling and using the word in a sentence. We are going to be learning a new song this week called Crazy Train by Ozzy Osbourne.

Subject and Predicate

The subject of a sentence is who or what the sentence is talking about.

Mr. Tim loves to eat ice cream.

Mr. Tim is the subject of this sentence because he is the one doing the action.

The predicate of a sentence is what is being done in the sentence or the object being talked about.

The horses ran fast.

Ran fast is the predicate of the sentence because that is what the horses are doing.

Vocabulary

animal
bully
mean
hungry
huge
pack
carry
pretty
treat
hear

Week 13 - April 26, 2010

2010-04-26T01:20:00.000-07:00

This week...
This week we are going to learn about past tense, and regular and irregular verbs. We also have 10 new vocabulary words that the students will have to know how to spell and use in a sentence. They were all given a packet that includes flash cards to study with (we will be using the words regularly in sentences during our lessons in class).

Past Tense:
The past tense refers to something that has already happened.
I walked to school. Tells us that you have already done it.
The past tense is used with regular and irregular verbs.

A regular verb is a verb that gets -ed attached to the end of the word such as play.
To make play in the past you add the ending -ed. Yesterday I played.

The ending -ed has 3 different sounds. "t" - "d" and "ed".

The "t" sound comes from words like watched, talked, kicked. The -ed sounds like the letter "t" --> watch-t, talk-t, kick-t.

The "d" sound comes from words like played, scared, cared. The -ed sounds like the letter "d" --> play-d, scare-d, care-d.

The "ed" sound comes from words like needed, graded, faded. The -ed sounds like the letters "ed" --> need-ed, grade-ed, fade-ed.

Irregular verbs are words that change form when they are used in the past tense. Words like hear, run, sleep, eat. These words change their form when the are used in the past tense.

I heard the car.
I ran to school.
I slept very late.
I ate my dinner.

Vocabulary...
wrote - I wrote my name on the paper. (irr.)
studied -I studied my vocabulary words. (reg.)
drank - I drank my water during class. (irr.)
fought - I fought Jon Cena yesterday. (irr.)
ate - I ate my dinner. (irr.)
slept - I slept all day yesterday. (irr.)
past - In the past I never did my homework.
was - Yesterday I was at my friends house. (irr.)
ran - I ran to my house. (irr.)
played - Yesterday I played football (reg.)

Week 12 - April 21, 2010

2010-04-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

Today...

We started learning about adverbs yesterday and are going to continue the lessons today. We will also be reviewing our vocabulary words for the quiz tomorrow.

Adverbs
An adverb is a word that describes (tells more about) a verb.
Example: The boy ran quickly down the hill.
The adverb in this sentence is quickly because it tells us how fast the boy was running.

Adverbs usually end in "-ly" but not always.

quickly
loudly
slowly
quietly
always
usually
sometimes
never
fast

These are just a few adverbs, there are many many more!

Can you find the adverbs?

The car was moving slowly.
The ball came quickly at me.
I always play football after school.
Sometimes I walk with my family after dinner.
The boy talked quietly in class.

-------------------------------------------------------------

slowly, quickly, always, sometimes, quietly.

Week 12 April 19, 2010

2010-04-19T00:56:00.001-07:00

This week...

This week we are going to be learning about before and after, adverbs, and how to use frequency words such as, often, usually, sometimes and never. We have a vocabulary test this week. It will consist of 10 words that they must spell and use in a sentence.

Vocabulary:

want - I want a pencil Mr. Tim.
should - I should do my homework.
often - Mr. Tim is often very crazy in our class.
usually - I usually don't have a pencil in class.
sometimes - Sometimes we play games in class.
went - I went to the store yesterday.
again - No, you can't go to the bathroom again.
never - I have never been to China.
take - Can I take a pencil Mr. Tim?
only - We only have 2 questions left.

Before and After:

Before and after are parts of speech that tell us the order in which things happen.

--> Before I went to school I ate breakfast.

--> After school I will play football.

Week 11 April 15, 2010

2010-04-14T20:46:00.000-07:00

Today...

Today we will have our spelling test. The students have been using the words all week in class and should have a good grasp on how to use them. After the test we are going to finish writing our letters, when we are finished we are going to make a video introducing ourselves and saying hello to my family in America.

This week we have worked on how to identify sequences in stories, plural ending sounds and suffixes, and letter formation. Check back tonight for some extra weekend work. Enjoy the weekend!

Week 11 April 13, 2010

2010-04-13T06:13:00.000-07:00

This week...

This week we will be learning about written letters. Their format (how to set them up) and their message. We will be working on them in class and on Thursday I will video tape the students reading their letters. These letters will be sent to my family in the states. We have 10 new vocabulary words for the week. They are:

under
above
behind
front
always
better
best
because
before
after

The students will be tested on these this Thursday.

This week we will also be working through our phonics books and some reading comprehension work sheets. Focusing on pulling information from our reading.

Thursday April 8, 2010

2010-04-08T00:34:00.000-07:00

Today...

This week we learned about count and non-count nouns and their descriptive adjectives. The students worked very hard at learning what they are and how to use them. We took our spelling test today and I will hand those back on Sunday. For the weekend the students have a worksheet to complete. I will see you all on Sunday!

Monday April 5, 2010

2010-04-05T08:01:00.000-07:00

Today...

Today we learned about count and non-count nouns. We went over a worksheet on identifying whether the noun is count or non-count.
Remember: A count noun can be counted! -> 1 apple - 3 apples / 1 boy - 5 boys
A non-count noun cannot be counted! --> Milk / grass / news / Earth / water

For homework the students have a vocabulary worksheet and a reading hand-out. The vocabulary worksheet focuses on putting the vocab word in the correct sentence. The reading hand-out is to be read out loud and if you can, answer the questions attached to it. Give it your best try! We will go over the answers and any questions you have in class.

Extra learning:

Read the sentences and tell whether the underlined noun is count or non-count.

Mr. Tim can't drink milk. ( count / non-count )
Yesterday we saw some boys running in the street. ( count / non-count )
How many farms are in Nablus? ( count / non-count )
Who is the most beautiful teacher in the school? ( count / non-count )
We need air to breathe. ( count / non-count )

2010-04-04T01:22:00.000-07:00

This week...
This week our theme is going to be The Farm. We will learn about what things are grown and/or raised on a farm. We will talk about each of the animals and how we get our food from them and the vegetables.

While we are learning about the farm we will also be doing phonics work, focusing on consonant sounds Ch and SH. The farm theme also ties in the use of Count and Non-count nouns.

A count noun is a noun that can be counted: 1 Banana - 3 Apples - 6 cows
A non-count noun cannot be counted: Milk - Grass - News

Count and non-count nouns use adjectives to help you know how much you are talking about: Some/Some --> Some can be used for both count and non-count nouns.

There are some apples on the table.
May I have some milk?

Much/Many --> Much is used for non-count nouns only while Many is used only for count only.

We dont have much time.
How many pencils do you have?

A little/few --> Little is used for non-count nouns only while few is used for count nouns only.

May I have a little milk?
We have few students this year who want to be in drama.

This week we will have a vocabulary test on Thursday. The words are:

farmer
work
season
milk
grass
much
many
few
little
some

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

2010-03-31T01:20:00.000-07:00

Today...
The students have been learning about our solar system. Learning about each of the planets, the stars and the moons. We have been learning how to compare one thing to another and one thing to everything else. We have also been going over distances; what is closer and what is further away from an object.

Today we went over our 10 vocabulary words again and the students did a wonderful job spelling them and using them in a sentence. The words are the following:

Sun
moon
planet
Earth
hot
cold
spin
float
star
space

The students will have a test on these tomorrow.

Today They were given a worksheet. The worksheet is a story about a visitor from another planet. For homework they are to finish this worksheet (questions 1-11). Bring that sheet in on Thursday. If there are any questions feel free to e-mail me or make an appointment to come in. I look forward to tomorrow, enjoy your afternoon!

Practice questions:

What day is today?
What is the antonym of large?
What is a synonym for mad?
What planet do we live on?
Is the Sun a star, a planet or a moon?
What is the biggest planet in our solar system?
What is the smallest planet in our solar system?
Which is closer to Earth, Saturn or Venus?
Which is further away from Earth, Mercury or Pluto
Which is bigger Neptune or Jupiter?

Remember --> Complete sentences and us your worksheet to help!

Answers -->

Today is Wednesday.
The antonym of large is small.
A synonym for mad is angry.
We live on planet Earth.
The Sun is a star.
The biggest planet in our solar system is Jupiter.
The smallest planet in our solar system is Mercury.
Venus is closer to Earth than Saturn.
Pluto is further away from Earth than Mercury.
Jupiter is bigger than Neptune.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

2010-03-25T01:59:00.000-07:00

Today...
Today we had our spelling test. Everyone did a very good job! The students will get their tests on Sunday to bring home! Remember, use the flash cards and study!

Today we also went outside to do our archaeology dig. The students watched me uncover a buried set of "dinosaur bones", then they worked in groups to discover their own artifacts in the ground. The students had a lot of fun and found many interesting things! Next week we are going to start learning about the solar system (all of the planets and stars). I look forward to seeing you all very soon, enjoy the weekend!!!

-Mr. Tim

Week 8 overview + March 21, 2010

2010-03-21T00:40:00.000-07:00

This week...

This week we start our themed weeks! The theme for this week is Archaeology, the study of things in the ground from the past. We are going to learn how to be archaeologists, find things in the ground and how to describe where they came from. All week we will learn about the tools we will use, how to describe things in the past tense and how to tell the if one item is older than another.

We also have a new set of vocabulary words this week, aimed at Archaeology. The words this week are:

dig
museum
mummy
ancient
fragile
tools
burial
culture
study
discover

We will have a test on these words on Thursday.

Today...

Today we read a story about archaeology and the different tools we will use. We learned our archaeology words so that we can use them when we are "out in the field". We are going to need to practice before our major dig so, we are going to have a scavenger hunt and some in class practice with old objects. The things I am gong to bring in are "1,000's of years old" so we are going to have to be very careful. ;)

We went over our vocabulary words today and got a homework assignment that is due tomorrow. The homework is to use the vocabulary words in a sentence (there is a worksheet to help!) Have a great day and I can't wait to see you tomorrow!

Thursday, March 18, 2010

2010-03-18T12:57:00.000-07:00

Today...
Today went very well with the second grade! We reviewed the weeks lessons, did an amazing job on our spelling test and then had a great time doing a review challenge with the students competing against each other to get the most correct review questions. Next week we will be starting themed weeks! The vocabulary and lessons will all be oriented towards different themes. If you are very good then Mr. Tim might come in dressed up in crazy costumes! If you have any ideas for themes let me know! I would love to hear your ideas! See you on Sunday!

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

2010-03-16T00:28:00.000-07:00

Today...

Today was a very good day, we had 2 periods of English and got through a lot of our material. We worked on understanding synonyms we got to play Mr. Tim's Synonym Memory Game which the students had a great time with and did very well. We made a lot of progress on our song, the students are getting very good (remember to practice!). We read the Dinosaur Babies story in our text book and worked with understanding the story by looking at the pictures!

Vocabulary Review:

Can you write a sentence using each of our vocabulary words?

Can you match each word with its Synonym from our vocab?

Monday, March 15, 2010

2010-03-15T01:45:00.000-07:00

Today...

Today the students and I practiced singing Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down and had a small competetion between the groups. We then picked the best singer (and reader) from each group for the final competition. After our song we study synonyms.

A synonym is a word the means the same as another word.
Example --> Mad is another word for Angry.

------>Can you give me a synonym for each of the following words?

Simple ____________
Big ______________
Toss _____________
Chat _____________
Enjoy ____________

(The answers are at the bottom - Don't look until you try!)

After learning synonyms we learned about Pronouns and Possessive adjectives!

Pronouns

A pronoun is a word that replaces a noun after it has already been used in a sentence.

Example --> Mr. Tim likes to run, he is very fast!

Run is the pronoun because it replaced the noun "Mr. Tim" and refers back to him.

List of Pronouns

I
He
She
It
You
They
We

The possessive adjectives are words that describe who owns something.

Example --> The bike is mine. --> I want to go to your house. --> This is our class.

Mine -- Your -- Our --> these are the possessive adjectives for the sentences above, because they tell us who owns something.

List of Possessive Adjectives

My
Your
Our
His
Her
Their
Its

After learning about Pronouns and Possessive Adjectives we began talking about what a Country is.

A country is bigger than a city. If the city you live in is Nablus than your country is Palestine.

-------> Can you tell me what country:

Mr. Tim is from ____________?
Mr. Curtis is from ___________?
Mr. Sean is from ____________?
Miss Kaitlin is from __________?
Ameed is from _____________?
YOU are from _____________?

(Answers are at the bottom - Don't look until you try!)

After talking about what a country is I had the students begin their homework in class. They are to think of a name for our class, so that we can make our own country. Write the name down on a blank piece of paper and then draw a picture to put on our money. The picture can be of anything you want. We will all choose which picture and name we like best and put it on our money!

Have a great day and I will see you tomorrow!

Answers: Easy - Huge - Throw - Talk - Like --> America - America - America - America - Jordan - ???????

Week 7 - March 14, 2010

2010-03-13T23:38:00.000-08:00

Hello! Last week the students went on a field trip to Jericho and had a great time! They got to see several different kinds of animals, go on rides and play in a water area! Overall the trip was very fun and HOT! They were going to have a spelling test that day, but instead we took it a day early and the students did fantastic! I returned the tests today with grades and corections and told them to bring the papers home and show their parents, so keep an eye out for them!

This week we will be lerning about Synonyms, We will be making our class into it's own "Country" and we have a new set of 10 vocabulary and spelling words. We will be incorporating work on Possessive Adjectves (My, Mine, ours, theirs) and Present continuous tense. The Spelling quiz will be on Thursday. The song for this week is still Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down.

SYNONYMS

A synonym is a word that means the same as another word

For Example: Mad is another word for Angry.

Can you think of a synonym for the words below?

Big
Tardy
Simple
Ill
Seat
Hop
Skinny
Toss
Enjoy
Stone

Country Making

We will be learning what a Country is and the things that make up the culture of a country. We will create our own flag, our own anthem, a name for our country and our own currency.

The students will be creating their own pictures to display on the walls of our country.

Vocabulary

This week we have 10 words (several are repeated from last week to solidify their understanding of the words and how they can be used.) that focus on synonyms. Each word has a partner word that is the synonym of it.

Big
Large
Nice
Kind
Small
Tiny
Mean
Angry
Good
Great

The students were given a packet with practice worksheets and flash cards. We will be going over them everyday but I expect the students to be practicing at home!! I want to see A++ on every paper! =)

Possessive Adjectives

A Possessive adjective is a word that refers to an individual and their ownership of something.

For example --> This is our blog. --> Our refers to you and I and shows that both of us own this blog.

We will be doing in class work and I will be sending a worksheet home with them this week.

Present Continuous Tense

We will also be reviewing the use of present continuous tense in stories. Focusing on describing what the subhect of the story is doing at any specific moment.

I am --> verb+ing

He is --> verb+ing

They are --> verb+ing

Today...

Today went very well. The students did a great job getting into their seats and starting their work. They were able to answer several difficult questions and were animated and interested in learning the new vocabulary and learning about synonyms!

We started with our warm up questions and then sang our song together (don't forget to practice with the song on the blog!!). After our song we learned our new vocabulary words (practice, practice, practice!) and then learned all about synonyms! The students were very quick to learn what a synonym is started on their homework early. They need to complete the rest of the worksheet for homework!

I am excited for tomorrow and hope everyone has a great day!

Week 6

2010-03-08T23:44:00.000-08:00

This week the 2A class is working on Antonyms, the days of the week and the months of the year. The class also has 10 vocabulary words that they will be quizzed on at the end of the week. The words for this week are:

Happy

Sad

Big

Small

Nice

Mean

Quiet

Loud

Good

Bad

The quiz will be this Thursday and will test the students on memorizing the words and being able to spell them. They have a set of flash cards to help them practice. These words are also pairs of antonyms.

An antonym is a word that is the opposite of another.

Example --> Good is the antonym (opposite) of Bad

--> Big is the antonym (opposite) of Small

Days and Months: (remember to capitalize!)

Days of the week

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday
Sunday

Months of the year

(1)January (2)February
(3)March (4)April
(5)May (6)June
(7)July (8)August
(9)September (10)October
(11)November (12)December

Our song for this week is Kryptonite by the band 3 Doors Down.

2A's New Teacher

2010-02-14T01:31:00.000-08:00

Hello,
My name is Mr. Tim and I am 2A's new English teacher. I have just recently completed my first degree at university. I am from The United States and arrived in Nablus three weeks ago.

The 2A class is wonderful, the students are very bright and fun. The first week was spent getting used to each other and making the class our own. During the second week we looked at rhyming words and capitals, refreshing some of the lessons from last semester.

During this week I plan on going into the past tense of verbs (regular and irregular endings), Story prediction through the use of pictures and working on identifying the parts of speech (verbs, noun, adjectives) in a sentence.