Year 2 Update Week 11
Monday 12th November – Mandarin Parent/Teacher Consultations….please sign up via The Gateway soon
Wednesday 14th November – Final Y2 pitch session
Wednesday 14th November – Mandarin Parent/Teacher Consultations….please sign up via The Gateway soon
Thursday 15th – Friday 16th November – Y3 Camp: Please note, Miss King and Ms Dale will be supporting Y3 camp and will not be in school, so will be covered by supply teachers during this time.
Wednesday 21st – Friday 23rd November – Y4 Camp: Please note, Miss Fisher will be supporting Y4 camp and will not be in school, so will be covered by a supply teacher during this time.
Wednesday 21st November – Mandarin Parent/Teacher Consultations….please sign up via The Gateway soon
Friday 23rd November – Scholastic online order deadline.
Friday 23rd November – Mandarin Parent/Teacher Consultations….please sign up via The Gateway soon
Tuesday 27th November – Mandarin Parent/Teacher Consultations….please sign up via The Gateway soon
Wednesday 12th December – Christmas Concert 7pm – If your child is in the Junior Choir, you do not need to buy them a ticket
Friday 14th December – Last day of Term 1….12pm finish
Our latest Scholastic Book Club is up and running! Go to http://world-schools.
Please place your order online by November 23rd, 2018.
Timetable
| PE Kit | Library Bags | |
| 2D | Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday | Thursday |
| 2F | Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday | Thursday |
| 2K | Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday | Wednesday |
Unit of Inquiry
This week the children had the opportunity to help create Bokashi compost following an informative slide show by Mr Melsom, a passionate environmentalist. The children were excited to work with Mr Melsom once more and were quick to recognise him as he recently sowed seeds with them. The compost will be used on the tomato plants which Beacon Hill’s Eco Squad have planted in the Butterfly Garden.
It would be wonderful if you could talk with your child about how such compost is made.
Pitch
The children thoroughly enjoyed their group activities on the Pitch. Due to the hot weather, frequent water breaks were taken and the children were encouraged to refill their bottles.
Diwali
The children looked amazing in their brightly coloured clothes and showed full-body listening as they watched an informative assembly. 2D engaged in further activities; some children worked with Mrs Chainrai on the playground to help create a rangoli pattern whilst others made diyas with Dhyans’s mother, Divya Dhupar.
Box of Hope
Year 2 children are showing a great deal of pleasure when adding their box of hope to the tower of boxes in front of the school hall. An act of kindness that will benefit other children greatly. Thank you!
Diversity House Day
The children had a special Diversity House assembly. It was led by the Diversity House Captains. The children were also able to meet a guide dog in training from the Hong Kong Seeing Eye Dog Services which Diversity House supports. They were able to find out all about guide dogs and how they help visually impaired people. Thank you to those who brought in money for the HKSEDS.
Central idea:
People’s choices can impact the environment
Lines of inquiry:
- Types of waste (form)
- What happens to waste (change)
- Choices people make to sustain the environment (responsibility)
The children are planning to reuse some rubbish. Each child is hoping to make a toy or something useful out of previously used boxes and containers. The following rubbish would be useful: empty cereal boxes, toothpaste boxes, kitchen roll tubes, sugar boxes, coffee capsule boxes etc. Please ask your child what they would like to make and encourage them to bring in the necessary rubbish from home.
Next week, the children will continue to ‘speak up’ as they share their ideas with others across the school regarding how to help the environment. They are hoping to persuade others to make small changes; small changes make a big difference!
Another exciting experience has been planned for our Year 2 children. Within the next fortnight, Mr Lowe is intending to demonstrate how an incinerator works!
Addition and Subtraction
Central Idea: The operations of addition and subtraction are related to each other (and are used to process information to solve problems)
An inquiry into:
- How we solve problems using addition and subtraction
- Mental and written strategies for addition and subtraction
- The language and symbols of addition and subtraction
The children will be working towards the following outcomes:
- Recall addition facts for numbers to at least 20
- Model addition and subtraction of whole numbers
- Represent and solve addition problems (including real life and word) involving 2 digit numbers, using appropriate strategies.
- Represent and solve subtraction problems (including real life and word) involving 2 digit numbers, using appropriate strategies
- Use estimation to check the reasonableness of answers to calculations
The children will continue to explore ‘fact families’. They have really enjoyed playing an online game which shows how addition and subtraction are related. This can be found on the following website:
https://www.topmarks.co.uk/number-facts/number-fact-families
The children will solve further word problems involving addition and subtraction and will be encouraged to think of their own for their friends to solve. For example:
‘Ben had 23 gummy bears and Ralph had 47. How many did they have altogether?’
‘Ben scored 24 goals whilst playing football. Toby scored 2. How many more goals did Ben score?
To help your child at home, please chat to your child about when you use subtraction and addition in daily life, for example, talk to them about how you know how much your shopping is going to be, or how you know how much change you will get!
https://www.mathplayground.com/number_bonds_10.html
https://www.mathplayground.com/number_bonds_20.html
Writing focus: Writing to persuade
Words are used to communicate an idea in order to influence people and make them think.
The children will look at a range of persuasive texts and begin to identify the language features.
In reading, the focuses are self-monitoring and summarising and synthesising. The children have been doing a fantastic job of summarising in their own words. Next week they will use a variety of different sources of information, such as books on Big Universe, books from the library and videos, to synthesise this information and chart how their thinking changes as they read.
Next week when writing the children will be constructing persuasive sentences and writing a letter to persuade.
Games and Activities to Develop Vocabulary
We have noticed that many of our Year 2 children would benefit from developing a broader vocabulary. With this in mind, we would like to recommend some games you can easily play at home, or on the move that will give your child the opportunity to develop their awareness and language skills.
- I Spy With My Little Eye
Benefits: vocabulary development, phonics and spelling awareness, observation skills and focus
Equipment: None
Number of players: Unlimited
Location: Anywhere!
Say, “I spy with my little eye something beginning with …” Start playing the game using objects in the room you can see. Begin with obvious items and over time move to more discreet objects. You can vary the game by using the initial sounds (phonics), or letters (spelling) or even colours or numbers. You can increase the challenge level by saying, “I spy with my little eye, something that ends in …”
- Word Association Game
Benefits: vocabulary development, fluency, memory and recall
Equipment: None
Number of players: Pairs are good, but more players possible if everyone takes turns
Location: Anywhere!
The first player, chosen randomly, says one word out loud. The other player has to quickly say a word that has some connection with the previous word. Players lose if …
- They take more than three seconds to make a connection.
- They repeat a word that has already been said in this game.
- They are challenged and loses the vote.
The last player standing is the winner.
For example, one sequences of words might be:
– Bus
– Stop
– Go
– Green
– Grass
– Garden
– Flower
Other well-known games we would recommend include, Pictionary, Charades
At BHS we have lots of great clubs which our students really enjoy so Ms Chung challenged us to create even more! As the student councillors, we interviewed our friends and classmates to find out their favourite clubs. We were wondering if any parents would like to help run these clubs? Do not panic! You do not need to be an expert or world champion, just enthusiastic and willing to help. This could be as a one off session or more, it is up to you. Please click on this google form to volunteer. The Student Council will then get in contact with you to organise the club. We will help with all the logistics such as venue, students and resources.
Thank you for any help you can give us.
