Tuesday Updates 10/29/24

 

Reminders for Tuesday, October 29th

• Remember your Chromebook and charger every day!
• Practice your student ID number!
• Homework packet due Friday, 11/8/24 
• It went home with your child on 10/28/24.
• It includes flash cards to use for practicing vocabulary for Habitats and Ecosystems.
• No School 10/30 & 10/31 - teacher work day
• No School 11/1 - Diwali
• No School 11/4 & 11/5 - teacher work day
• Field Trip on 11/7
• We are going to LEGO Discovery Center to learn about force and motion.
• Please remember to have your child:
• Pack a lunch.
• Wear comfortable shoes.
• Be on time to school!
• 2-digit Place Value quiz on 11/8 (math)
• Habitats and Ecosystems Test on 11/14 (science)
• Your child needs to know that plants and animals depend on their environment and habitat to survive. (interdependence). They live in a specific habitat and environment because it gives them everything they need to survive.
• 3-digit Place Value quiz on 11/15 (math)

Notes

• PEP (Parents as Educational Partners)
• There are monthly events for grown-ups and caregivers of English Language (EL students). They are hosted by Mrs. Gustilo, one of our EL teachers at PNB, and Ms. Stiffler; while our kids happen to have both these teachers, these meetings are for ALL families at Pinebrook. All meetings are held at Pinebrook.
• Next event is Tuesday, 11/19/24 from 5:30 - 7:30pm.
• Topic: The U.S. School System, Study Skills, and Homework
• Dinner and childcare will be provided.
• Please let Mrs. Gustilo (roxanne.gustilo@lcps.org) or Ms. Stiffler know if you plan to attend and if you would like an translator for your langauge (Arabic, Urdu, etc.) Thank you!

• Weekly Reminders
• Return library books by Mondays!
• We will get new books EVERY Monday.
• If you do not return your books, you will not be allowed to pick out new books.
• Wear sneakers on Tuesday and Thursday for P.E.
• If you do not wear sneakers/tennis shoes/trainers or closed-toed shoes (NO boots), you will not be allowed to participate in P.E. This is a rule from the P.E. teachers.
• Ice Cream is available at lunch on Wednesdays for $1.
• LCPS allows students to purchase ice cream any day of the week.
• As a team, second grade is encouarged to get ice cream on Wednesday to help prevent any chaos (like buying 4 ice creams).
• Parents can join at lunchtime on Tuesdays and Thursdays!
• Please be sure to bring your ID card to get in the front door.
• Please make sure to stay at our table. You can walk your kiddo back to the classroom after lunch (when Ms. Stiffler comes to pick them up) if you would like.
• Our lunch is 12:20 - 12:50pm.
• House Spirit Days are on Fridays.
• Wear your house color on Fridays to show house spirit. 

• Pinebrook Family Resources Page
• Information on how to study, testing, online programs, etc.

PTA Events

• School Store will now be open on Fridays from 7:40 - 8:00am.
• PTA Fun Run Fundraising has begun! 
• Donations are being accepted from now until 10/17.

Week Overview

SEL/Morning Meeting & Grade 2 SEL Home Link document (new!)

Phonics - We reviewed -dge /j/ (bridge) and -tch /ch/ (scratch). We also reviewed VCe words.

Handwriting  -  We practiced the lowercase and uppercase letters Xx and Zz.

Reading - We started Module 3 of reading. We practiced our vocabulary and learned the words compromise, disagreement, and decision.
Writing - We practiced checking for capital letters.

Math - We learned about 2-digit place value (tens and ones). We will continue this next week.

Social Studies - We learned about several important people from the Revoluntionary War period of the United States. Next week, we will start learning about habitats and ecosystems.

I will see the kids again on 11/6.

Have a fabulous fall break,

Friday Updates 10/25/24

Reminders for Friday, October 25th

• Remember your Chromebook and charger every day!
• Practice your student ID number!
• Homework packet due Friday, 11/8/24 
• It went home with your child on 10/28/24.
• Revolutionaries writing assignment on Tuesday, 10/29 (social studies)
• Your child needs to know the historical importance of Benjamin Franklin and George Washington. Why should we know who they are? What did they give to American culture/history?
• Fall Class Party on Tuesday, 10/29
• We will be having our fall class party from 1:00-2:15pm.
• If you would like to attend, please let Ms. Stiffler know so she can let the front office know. We like to keep track of who plans to be in the building. Thank you!
• No School 10/30 & 10/31 - teacher work day
• No School 11/1 - Diwali
• No School 11/4 & 11/5 - teacher work day
• Field Trip on 11/7
• We are going to LEGO Discovery Center to learn about force and motion.
• Please remember to have your child:
• Pack a lunch.
• Wear comfortable shoes.
• Be on time to school!

Notes

• PEP (Parents as Educational Partners)
• There are monthly events for grown-ups and caregivers of English Language (EL students). They are hosted by Mrs. Gustilo, one of our EL teachers at PNB, and Ms. Stiffler; while our kids happen to have both these teachers, these meetings are for ALL families at Pinebrook. All meetings are held at Pinebrook in Room 11.

• Next event is Tuesday, 10/29/24 from 5:30 - 7:30pm.
• Dinner and childcare will be provided.
• Please let Mrs. Gustilo (roxanne.gustilo@lcps.org) or Ms. Stiffler know if you plan to attend. Thank you!

• Weekly Reminders
• Return library books by Mondays!
• We will get new books EVERY Monday.
• If you do not return your books, you will not be allowed to pick out new books.
• Wear sneakers on Tuesday and Thursday for P.E.
• If you do not wear sneakers/tennis shoes/trainers or closed-toed shoes (NO boots), you will not be allowed to participate in P.E. This is a rule from the P.E. teachers.
• Ice Cream is available at lunch on Wednesdays for $1.
• LCPS allows students to purchase ice cream any day of the week.
• As a team, second grade is encouarged to get ice cream on Wednesday to help prevent any chaos (like buying 4 ice creams).
• Parents can join at lunchtime on Tuesdays and Thursdays!
• Please be sure to bring your ID card to get in the front door.
• Please make sure to stay at our table. You can walk your kiddo back to the classroom after lunch (when Ms. Stiffler comes to pick them up) if you would like.
• Our lunch is 12:20 - 12:50pm.
• House Spirit Days are on Fridays.
• Wear your house color on Fridays to show house spirit. 

• Pinebrook Family Resources Page
• Information on how to study, testing, online programs, etc.

PTA Events

• School Store will now be open on Fridays from 7:40 - 8:00am.
• PTA Fun Run Fundraising has begun! 
• Donations are being accepted from now until 10/17.

Week Overview

SEL/Morning Meeting & Grade 2 SEL Home Link document

Phonics - We learned about -ce /s/ (nice), -ge /j/ (page), -tch /ch/ (stretch), and -dge (dodge).

Handwriting  -  We practiced the capital letters R, J, K, Q, V, Y.

Reading - We learned about connecting text and visuals and making connections to the texts we are reading.
Writing - We learned about punctuation and practiced adding punctuation to sentences.

Math - We practiced skip counting backwards by ten and how to tell if a number is even or odd. We will start 2-digit place value next week.

Science - We learned about the life cycle of a white-tailed deer and compared animal and plant life cycles. We started learning about revolutionary figures in American history. We will continue this next week.

Have a terrific weekend, 

Turkey of the Year 2024

   Gobble, gobble, gobble...it's that time again!

Time for students to read and vote to try and get their favorite teachers into the Turkey of the Year costume!

How It Works: For each hour that your child reads at home, they receive a voting ballot. They choose a teacher or staff member they would like to see as the Turkey of the Year.

What to do at home: Keep track of how many hours your child reads and send in the slips on Friday morning; it MUST be sent in on Friday as late submissions will NOT be accepted.

When to track hours: Please track your child's reading during the weeks of:

• October 25 - 31 (send slip in on November 6th) *due to student holidays*
• November 1 - 7 (send slip in on November 8th)
• November 8  - 14 (send slip in on November 15th)
• November 15 - 21 (send slip in on November 22nd)

Here is a copy of the Turkey of the Year information that was sent home.

• Arabic copy
• Urdu copy

Please email Mrs. Higgins, denise.higgins@lcps.org, with any questions.

Happy Reading!

Friday Updates 10/18/24

 

Reminders for Friday, October 18th

• Remember your Chromebook and charger every day!
• Practice your student ID number!
• Homework packet due on Friday, 10/25.
• It will be sent home on Monday, 10/21
• Backwards by 10 quiz on Wednesday, 10/23 (math)
• Skip count backwards by 10 from 200 (200, 190, 180, 170, 160, etc.)
• Animal Life Cycles test on Wednesday, 10/23 (science)
• Your child needs to know how animal life cycles repeat, that animals will change as they grow, and the similarities/differences between animal and plant life cycles.
• Your child should also know the stages in the life cycles of butterflies and white-tailed deer.
• Even/Odd Numbers quiz on Friday, 10/25 (math)
• Be able to identify an even number (0, 2, 4, 6, 8 in the ones place) and an odd number (1, 3, 5, 7, 9 in the ones place).
• Revolutionaries Writing on Tuesday, 10/29 (social studies)
• Your child needs to be able to write about one revolutionary figure and their importance to our country. Why should we know who they are? What did they give to American culture/history?
• Fall Class Party on Tuesday, 10/29
• We will be having our fall class party from 1:00-2:15pm.
• Please consider donating $30 to our class fund.
• If you would like to attend, please let Ms. Stiffler know so she can let the front office know. We like to keep track of who plans to be in the building. Thank you!
• If you would like to help/volunteer, please contact our room parents, Ms. Gilda Ruiz Esquivel at Gilda_jennifer@hotmail.com or Mrs. Tara Handwerk at handwerktd@gmail.com.
• No School 10/30 & 10/31 - teacher work day
• No School 11/1 - Diwali
• No School 11/4 & 11/5 - teacher work day

Notes

• PEP (Parents as Educational Partners)
• There are monthly events for grown-ups/caregivers of English Language (EL students). They are hosted by Mrs. Gustilo, one of our EL teachers at PNB, and Ms. Stiffler; while our kids happen to have both these teachers, these meetings are for ALL families at Pinebrook. All meetings are held at Pinebrook in the library.
• NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, October 29th from 5:30 - 7:00pm.
• Refreshments and childcare will be provided.

• Weekly Reminders
• Return library books by Mondays!
• We will get new books EVERY Monday.
• If you do not return your books, you will not be allowed to pick out new books.
• Wear sneakers on Tuesday and Thursday for P.E.
• If you do not wear sneakers/tennis shoes/trainers or closed-toed shoes (NO boots), you will not be allowed to participate in P.E. This is a rule from the P.E. teachers.
• Ice Cream is available at lunch on Wednesdays for $1.
• LCPS allows students to purchase ice cream any day of the week.
• As a team, second grade is encouarged to get ice cream on Wednesday to help prevent any chaos (like buying 4 ice creams).
• Parents can join at lunchtime on Tuesdays and Thursdays!
• Please be sure to bring your ID card to get in the front door.
• Please make sure to stay at our table. You can walk your kiddo back to the classroom after lunch (when Ms. Stiffler comes to pick them up) if you would like.
• Our lunch is 12:20 - 12:50pm.
• House Spirit Days are on Fridays.
• Wear your house color on Fridays to show house spirit. 

• Pinebrook Family Resources Page
• Information on how to study, testing, online programs, etc.

PTA Events

• School Store will now be open on Fridays from 7:40 - 8:00am.

Week Overview

SEL/Morning Meeting & Grade 2 SEL Home Link document

Phonics - We learend about VCe long a /ā/ (cake), long i /ī/ (bike), long u /ū/ /yū/ (cute), long o /ō/ (home), and long e /ē/ (these). We also learned about singular possessive plurals - dog's bowl, the bowl belongs to the dog.

Handwriting  -  We practiced the capital letters H, N, G, W, P, B.

Reading - We learned about making connections (text-to-self, text-to-text, text-to-world) and creating mental images using words. 
Writing - We wrote about a trip that we would like to take. We did some research using books on Epic to learn more about the place we wanted to travel to.

Math - We learned about the equals sign = and the unequal/not equal sign and how to compare equations using both symbols. Next week, we will review skip counting backwards and learn about even and odd numbers.

Science - We learned about the life cycle of a butterfly. Next week, we will learn about the life cycle of a white-tailed deer and compare animal life cycles to plant life cycles.

Have a wonderful weekend, 

Room Parents Letter 2024

Dear Parents of Ms. Stiffler’s Class,

I would like to introduce myself, Tara (Elyse’s Mom) and Gilda (Jennifer’s Mom), as Ms. Stiffler's Room Parents for the 2024-2025 school year. We are excited and looking forward to helping our kids and their amazing teacher have the best year ever! We are here to help plan class parties/end of year celebration, honor our hard-working teacher, and help make this year a fun and rewarding experience for our children.

We would love and appreciate your help this year, and there will be opportunities for parents to volunteer (please be on the lookout for a Sign Up Genius in your email for each party) and various other ways to contribute to our celebrations. We look forward to meeting and working with you all. Email reminders will be our way of keeping in touch throughout the year regarding volunteering for parties, party dates/times, and plans for an end of year teacher gift.

Our 3 Class Parties:

1.      Fall Party: Tuesday, October 29^h (1:00-2:15)

2.      Valentine’s Party: Friday, February 14^th (1:00-2:15)

3.      End of Year Celebration (Date and Time TBD)

To ensure we can have wonderful and fun parties, I am asking you to please consider (if able) a one-time contribution of $30 (or whatever amount you are able to donate) to cover all party expenses (including food, crafts, and games) and various gifts for the year. All money will go directly to your child’s class fund and will help make these events extra special. Any money left over will be used for a thoughtful end of year/thank you teacher gift, special goodies throughout the year and/or any classroom wish list items. We would also like to use some of the class fund to purchase a class baby gift for Ms. Stiffler as well as a thank you gift for our long-term substitute teacher who will be supporting our class while Ms. Stiffler is out on maternity leave.

Please print this email (or use the paper copy that will be sent home with your child this week) and detach the form below, including your donation (cash, check, or electronic payment) and return to Ms. Stiffler in an envelope with ‘Ms. Stiffler’s Class Fund’ written on the front. Please have donations submitted by Monday, October 21^st. If you wish to write a check, please make it payable to Tara Handwerk. If you prefer to use Venmo or PayPal as an electronic transfer option, you can send through either of the accounts listed below and then send the form back stating donation made through one of these options. If you are unable to donate, no problem, but anything that you can give would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your support of our wonderful 2^nd graders! 😊

-Tara Handwerk and Gilda Ruiz Esquivel

 

·        Venmo -- @Tara_Handwerk (703-795-2670 – verification phone number)

·        PayPal – PayPal.Me/tarahandwerk (Use link or email: handwerktd@gmail.com)

Friday Updates 10/11/24

Class Playlist is live! 

Reminders for Friday, October 11th

• Remember your Chromebook and charger every day!
• Practice your student ID number!
• Homework packet due on Friday, 10/18.
• It will be sent home on Tuesday, 10/15
• No school 10/14 - Indigenous Peoples' Day
• Bullying Prevention Spirit Week
• Equal/Unequal quiz on Friday, 10/18 (math)
• Your child should know that the = sign means that the numbers on both sides are the same and the ≠ means that the number on one side is not equal to the other.
• 14 - 6 = 8 is true. 8 = 8 is true. 14 - 6 = 4 + 4 is true.
• 10 + 3 ≠ 12 is true. 7 ≠ 13 is true. 3 + 10 ≠ 14 - 2 is true.
• Animal Life Cycles test on Wednesday, 10/23 (science)
• Your child needs to know how animal life cycles repeat, that animals will change as they grow, and the similarities/differences between animal and plant life cycles.
• Revolutionaries quiz on Tuesday, 10/29 (social studies)
• Your child needs to know the historical importance of Benjamin Franklin and George Washington. Why should we know who they are? What did they give to American culture/history?

Notes

• PEP (Parents as Educational Partners)
• There are monthly events for grown-ups/caregivers of English Language (EL students). They are hosted by Mrs. Gustilo, one of our EL teachers at PNB, and Ms. Stiffler; while our kids happen to have both these teachers, these meetings are for ALL families at Pinebrook. All meetings are held at Pinebrook in the library.

• Weekly Reminders
• Return library books by Mondays!
• We will get new books EVERY Monday.
• If you do not return your books, you will not be allowed to pick out new books.
• Wear sneakers on Tuesday and Thursday for P.E.
• If you do not wear sneakers/tennis shoes/trainers or closed-toed shoes (NO boots), you will not be allowed to participate in P.E. This is a rule from the P.E. teachers.
• Ice Cream is available at lunch on Wednesdays for $1.
• LCPS allows students to purchase ice cream any day of the week.
• As a team, second grade is encouarged to get ice cream on Wednesday to help prevent any chaos (like buying 4 ice creams).
• Parents can join at lunchtime on Tuesdays and Thursdays!
• Please be sure to bring your ID card to get in the front door.
• Please make sure to stay at our table. You can walk your kiddo back to the classroom after lunch (when Ms. Stiffler comes to pick them up) if you would like.
• Our lunch is 12:20 - 12:50pm.
• House Spirit Days are on Fridays.
• Wear your house color on Fridays to show house spirit. 

• Pinebrook Family Resources Page
• Information on how to study, testing, online programs, etc.

PTA Events

• School Store will now be open on Fridays from 7:40 - 8:00am.
• PTA Fun Run Fundraising has begun! 
• Donations are being accepted from now until 10/17.

Week Overview

SEL/Morning Meeting & Grade 2 SEL Home Link document

Phonics - We reviewed three-consonant blends (scr-, str-, spr-, squ-, thr-, shr-, -nch); these are letters that all make their own sounds and can be blended when sounding out words. We learned about contractions (I've = I have, she'll = she wil) and schwa sounds (when vowels don't sound correct due to the American accent).

Handwriting  -  We practiced the capital letters F, L, S, A, O, U.

Reading - We learned about how to find content-area words in a text and find the setting (where? when?) of a fiction text.

Writing - We wrote goals for ourselves.

Math - We practiced our basic subtraction skills and learned about fact families.

Science - We learned about the life cycle of a plant and how plants grow and change over time. Next week, we will start to learn about the life cycles of a butterfly and a white-tailed deer and discuss how animal life cycles are simliar to plant life cycles.

Have wonderful 4-day weekend,