Week of January 28th

Get ready for some fun...

This week is National Lutheran Schools' Week!!
We're so excited to celebrate the gift of serving your children with academic excellence, but we are most grateful for the opportunity to share Jesus’ amazing love with them too! National Lutheran Schools' Week gives us an opportunity to proclaim this wonderful blessing! 

Join us this week as we celebrate with a different theme each day.

Monday- PJ or Comfy Clothes Day

Tuesday - Favorite Sports Team Day 

Wednesday - 100th Day of School - Decade Day

Thursday - Tourist Day 

Friday - Book Character Day

Last Thursday, author, Tracy Schlepphorst, came to CCLS. 

We learned so much about becoming a real author... 

CHRISTIAN CHARACTER FORMATION PROJECT

We will not focus on a specific virtue this week, but instead, we will celebrate our blessings with the National Lutheran Schools' Week daily devotions. This year's theme is: "Real. Present. God." from Psalm 46. 

Also, as a reminder... Please remind your second grader to do an extra chore this week, collect some change, and bring in their jar to add to our CCLS-U coin collection. Our CCLS-U friends greatly appreciate all you do to help. Our current total is $167.00 and our goal is $250.00. 

PHONICS and SPELLING

We'll be reading, sorting and spelling words with the "au" and "aw" spelling patterns.

READING SKILLS and STRATEGIES 

Pairing fiction with nonfiction is a fantastic way to engage different kinds of learners with common themes. This week we’ll be reading a nonfiction article about groundhogs and a fiction story about Groundhog's Day. Paring these texts will help students understand the attributes of both types of reading material and deepen the dialogue and questions raised during discussions. 

GRAMMAR and WRITING 

Our focus on grammar will be past tense irregular verbs, but your students are always working on editing and revising what they write. We even learned that Mrs. Schlepphorst took three years to publish her first book! WOW! 

***Soon we'll be working on a special biography writing unit. Part of this project will involve you and your child reading a book, and taking notes on a famous American at home. The other part will involve them writing a biography report in class. Students will present their knowledge about their famous American on February 22nd. More information about this will be coming home today! Be sure to check your child's daily folder.***

NEWS and NOTES 

• Box Top Collection! Bring in your Box Tops! 
• Thursday - January 31st - Reading Log Due
• January 28th-February 1st - National Lutheran Schools' Week
• There will be an "Indoor Picnic Lunch" with chapel families on Friday the 1st. Please either order a sack lunch or pack one from home, along with a blanket or towel to sit on, and a favorite picture book from home. 
• February 6th morning Field Trip to CPH to learn more about publishing books 
• February 10th - CCLS Sunday at Glendale 9:15 service 
  
• February 16th - CCLS Auction 
• February 18th - NO SCHOOL

BLESSINGS ON YOUR WEEK!

Week of January 22nd

January is flying by, and your second-graders are learning and growing every day. 

We've also had a lot of fun... 

Friday morning choir- and getting to know our new student, Alaina. 

Mad Science and Kids Heart Challenge assemblies…

CHRISTIAN CHARACTER FORMATION

This week we will read about how Jesus teaches his disciples to pray from Matthew 6:9-10. The virtue we will review is DILIGENCE. We define diligence as God's power for you to complete good work. Our "Big Question" is - What helps you to pray with diligence about the most important things? 

PHONICS and SPELLING 

The "spelling rule" this week is the "long oo" sound (spelled with oo, ue, ew, ui, and oe spelling patterns).

READING SKILLS and STRATEGIES 

Your second graders are still working on thinking, wondering and asking questions as they read. This week, we will discuss thin versus thick questions, and challenge each other to dig deeper into the text. 

GRAMMAR and WRITING 

Your second graders are leaning a lot about what it takes to be a realistic fiction author. This week, they'll work on polishing some of the pieces they've created so far. 

NEWS and NOTES 

• January 23rd - Cake mix and frosting for Operation Food Search Due 
• January 24th - Author Visit: Tracy Schlepphorst
• January 27th - CCLS Sunday at Prince of Peace 9:00 service 
• January 28th-February 1st - National Lutheran Schools' Week
• There will be an "Indoor Picnic Lunch" with chapel families on Friday the 1st. Please either order a sack lunch or pack one from home, along with a blanket or towel to sit on, and a favorite picture book from home. 
• February 6th morning Field Trip to CPH to learn more about publishing books 
• February 10th - CCLS Sunday at Glendale 9:15 service 
  
• February 16th - CCLS Auction 
• February 18th - NO SCHOOL

BLESSINGS ON YOUR WEEK!

Week of January 14th

I hope you all stayed warm and safe, and had fun in the snow over the weekend. The Klug family had a blast! Amongst all the chaos of the snow, several important papers went home on Friday. Please let Mrs. Leet and me know if you have any questions about your child's report card. We are happy to meet for further discussions. 

Here's what's in store for the week... 

CHRISTIAN CHARACTER FORMATION PROJECT 

This week we will read about Jesus teaching about love from Matthew 5:46-47. The virtue we will focus on is RESPECT, which we define as God's power for you to honor Him and others. We will ask ourselves this "big question" - How can a respectful, loving attitude bless God, others and you? 

PHONICS and SPELLING 

We'll be reading, sorting and spelling words with the "short oo" vowel sounds this week... For example, words like foot, book, shook, and took. 

A note about homework... 

Please remember to look over your child's homework. I actually PREFER that you help your child fix his/her sentences before they are turned in. The kiddos sometimes still need reminders to use capital letters (and lowercase) where they belong, and the necessary punctuation. The more practice with this, the better they will get! Also, if your child tends to rush through homework, I'm asking you to remind him/her to write neatly and clearly. Some homework has been turned in very messy lately. Thank you! 

READING SKILLS and STRATEGIES 

Certain genres prompt more questions than others. Mysteries make us wonder about outcomes. Nonfiction stories fill us with questions about the real world and its broad range of things to learn. As developing readers realize their inner conversation, reading takes on new importance. This week students will continue to WONDER as they read... They will practice jotting down their inner thinking to help them comprehend at a much deeper level. 

A note about reading at home... 

January reading logs are due on January 31st. The Six Flags Read to Succeed reading log came home last week. Since your child is already doing so much reading at home, meeting the (6 hour) goal to earn a Six Flags day pass should be pretty easy! Please continue to use the school reading log for my records, but remember to include your child's reading minutes on the "Read to Succeed" log as well. 
The Six Flags logs will be due on February 22nd. 

GRAMMAR and WRITING 

In grammar, students will learn about helping verbs and practice using the correct verb while editing sentences. 

Our realistic fiction writing series is off to a great start! Ask your child about some of his/her topics... They have been very creative! 

NEWS and NOTES 

• January 18th - CCLS Bingo Night 
• January 21st - NO SCHOOL for Martin Luther King Jr. Day 
• January 23rd - Cake mix and frosting for Operation Food Search Due 
• January 24th - Author Visit: Tracy Schlepphorst
• January 27th - CCLS Sunday at Prince of Peace 9:00 service 
• January 28th-February 1st - National Lutheran Schools' Week
• February 6th morning Field Trip to CPH to learn more about publishing books 
• February 10th - CCLS Sunday at Glendale 9:15 service 
  
• February 16th - CCLS Auction 
• February 18th - NO SCHOOL

BLESSINGS ON YOUR WEEK!

Week of Janurary 7th

Welcome back to school!! 

I hope you all had a wonderful time celebrating the birthday of our King... and ringing in the New Year with family and friends. I'm so excited to start 2019 with your sweet children! 

My family and I sure had a fabulous time together. We enjoyed so many special moments, all of which will be treasured.  

I want to thank all of you for showering Mrs. Leet and me with so many Christmas gifts! I felt very loved and appreciated. You are all SO great, and I am blessed to be a part of this CCLS family with you. 

Here are this week's objectives:

CHRISTIAN CHARACTER FORMATION PROJECT 

This week we will read from Matthew chapter 2 and learn about the Magi visiting Jesus. The virtue we will focus on is Self-Sacrifice. We define Self-Sacrifice as God's power for you to give up something to help others. The "Big Question" we will ask ourselves is - When are you willing to walk a long way to honor Jesus? 

PHONICS and SPELLING 

The spelling "rule" this week are the r-controlled vowel sounds. For example, er, ir, ur spelling patterns. 

READING SKILLS and STRATEGIES 

To aid in comprehension, skillful readers ask themselves questions before, during and after they read. For the next few weeks we are going to focus on remembering to ask questions and WONDER about things as we read.

GRAMMAR and WRITING 
The kiddos will be working on editing and reviewing various grammar skills. They love catching mistakes! In writing, we'll be starting a new unit of study - fiction! They're going to love tapping into their instinct to pretend! 

NEWS and NOTES 

• January 18th - CCLS Bingo Night 
• January 21st - NO SCHOOL for Martin Luther King Jr. Day 
• January 24th - Author Visit: Tracy Schlepphorst
• January 27th - CCLS Sunday at Prince of Peace 
• January 28th-February 1st - National Lutheran Schools' Week
• January 29th - CCLS University for parents 
• February 6th morning Field Trip to CPH to learn more about publishing books 
• February 16th - CCLS Auction 
• February 18th - NO SCHOOL 

BLESSINGS ON YOUR WEEK!

Week of December 17th

This sure is a busy time of year. I love that your sweet second graders have been praying every morning to help us all remember the true reason for this Christmas season.

They sure have their eyes fixed on Jesus! 

Be sure to check out our new art project in the hallway... 

READING SKILLS and STRATEGIES 

This week we will be having fun comparing and contrasting fiction and nonfiction Gingerbread books. We'll be finding facts, retelling, and having fun with a few STEM projects. 

NO SPELLING THIS WEEK

The words and pink sheet will come home for the week of January 7th (the week we come back from break).

WRITING 

Your second graders published their nonfiction stories last week. They are very proud! This week we'll practice writing with our own versions of The Gingerbread Man.

NEWS and NOTES

·                     ALL WEEK Change Challenge Collection to support CCLS-U sponsor children

·                     December 17th (tonight) CCLS Advent Service 6:30pm 

o    Your child should arrive by 6:25 and sit in the pews with our class

·                     December 21st - December Reading Logs Due 

·                     December 21st - End of 2nd Quarter and Class Christmas Party!  

BLESSINGS ON YOUR WEEK!

Week of December 10th

Happy Monday! Two more full week of school before Christmas break. The children are getting anxious, as we prepare for Jesus' birth! 
To get in the spirit, we were able to read Christmas stories to our preschool reading buddies last week...

Did you hear about the "Hour of Code?" 

If not, ask your second grader about how they dabbled with coding last week!

Wow! Many of them know way more than I do! 

CHRISTIAN CHARACTER FORMATION 
This week we'll continue to read about the story of Jesus' birth. As we read, we'll discuss how we think the different characters were feeling and carry on the topic of "making inferences" as we read different perspectives of the Christmas story from The Bible. 

PHONICS and SPELLING 

The spelling rule this week is "bossy R." These r-controlled words have the "ar" and "or" spelling patterns. 

READING SKILLS and STRATEGIES 

Inferring is kind of like the big umbrella and predicting fits neatly under it. But what’s the difference between them? We'll be investigating the two this week... Predicting is when you use your schema + clues the author gives you to make an “educated” guess. A prediction can usually be confirmed or denied through further reading. Making inferences also requires your schema + clues the author gives you to make a guess, but inferences are not clearly confirmed or denied through reading. Wow! We'll be working hard!

GRAMMAR and WRITING

Our targeted grammar skill will challenge second graders to identify linking verbs and helping verbs this week.

In their own writing, second graders will continue to work diligently as they consider their audience and work on engaging them with descriptions, interesting facts, or an enticing lead. Students will also be using their Google accounts to safely search for images that correspond to their nonfiction writing pieces. I have mentioned to the kiddos that they can always use their google account at home too! Therefore, here are some steps for finding more images at home... This is completely optional and while children search images, it's always smart to monitor the search by an adult.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHQQP5DejtY&authuser=0 - in depth tutorial

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4J6NTA0-Yig&authuser=0 - quick tutorial 

This week's NEWS and NOTES

• Week of December 17th - 2nd Change Challenge Collection 
•  Last month we collected about $110.00 dollars! What a great start to our $250 goal!
• December 17th - CCLS Advent Service 6:30pm  
• December Reading Logs Due December 21st
• December 21st - Class Christmas Party!   
• December 21st - End of 2nd Quarter - Christmas breaks begins

BLESSINGS ON YOUR WEEK!