What do you love about 2nd Grade? What would you change?

Second grade is a great time.  Tell me what you love about it.  There are always ways to make it better, too.  What would you do to make 2nd grade better?

Fighting the Fire's Main Idea

Read "Fighting the Fire" with a partner.  What is the Main Idea of the article?

Ouch! That Hurts.

Think about the things that people do that hurts the Earth.  Write about one thing and describe how it hurts Earth.

Clean Your Room--Uh, I Mean Your Earth

Think about things you can do to make Earth a cleaner place to live.  Write about one thing you can do and tell how it will help Earth.

Animal Research: Cleaning Behaviors

We've been reading about the cleaning behaviors of animals this week.  Choose an animal that is not in our story "Splish! Splash! Animal Baths" and search for information on how the animal takes care of itself.

You should do your research and plan your writing before you sign on to make a Post.  Focus on facts that go along with our story "Splish! Splash! Animal Baths."

Click here to visit the National Geographic Animals Fact site to get you started.

A New Ending for the "The Fox and the Crane"

At the end of the Aesop's fable, "The Fox and Crane," the fox got his comeuppance for tricking Crane out of his dinner.  The moral being if you trick someone expect to be tricked yourself.

Write a new ending to the story.  Include a new character.  Will your story end tragically? Will it be a happy ending? Try to use these words in your post: affection, crave, frustrated, nourishment, and seek.

Dear Farm Kid Journal

Imagine that you work on a farm. Write a journal entry to tell what you did today.

Check out the site below to learn more about farm life and farm animals
Farm Life and Farm Animals

Down On the Farm!

Think about all different types of jobs done on a farm.  What kind of job on a farm do you think you would enjoy most?

What Do You Do When You Get Out and Go?

Mr. B. at the top of Clawhammer Mountain in the Pisgah National Forest near Asheville, NC.   

What's something fun that you do that keeps you active and fit?
Many people do active things just because they are fun.  Write about your favorite activity that you love to do that is also good for you.  It can be a sport, a group activity, or even a job you do around the yard.
So what's your thing? Mountain biking? Basketball? Building a tree fort?

Party Animals!

Write a party invitation for an animal's first birthday. You choose the animal.  You are inviting your friends and family, so the invitation does not have to be formal.  Include a sentence about how the animal has changed in one year.

Give Your 411 (information) on Your 911 (emergency)

Penn Township's Rescue 6 Ambulance Team

Have you ever had an emergency where you or a family member needed to go to the Emergency Room? If so, write about what happened.  What was the emergency? Who helped you and your family? Where did you go? How did you feel when it started? How did you feel after it was all done?
If you haven't had and emergency, first thank your lucky star, then write about what you think would happen if you had to call 911.

Become Sidney the Seal

Photograph by Bruce Muirhead

Imagine you are Sidney the Seal and the sea mammal center workers just helped you return to the ocean.  Write a story about how you feel when you hit the water.  Make your story interesting by explaining things you hear, smell, touch, and taste.  

Click here to learn more about Harbor Seals

Pet Care: How to Care For Your Pet

Imagine that you are going on vacation and you need someone to take care of your animals.  Write directions for caring for your pet.  You can choose a pet you have or, if you don't have a pet, write about how to take care of a pet you'd like to have.

Click here to visit the ASPCA for more tips on Pet Care.

Brain Puzzler: "A Class Act"

There are thirty students in a class.  Five of these students do not play any sort of musical instrument.  Among the others, eighteen students play guitar.  Six of these guitar players also play keyboards.

How many of the students in the class play only keyboards?

Hint :A Venn Diagram can be a helpful tool to solve this problem.

from Critical Thinking Puzzles by Michael A. DiSpezio


Click here to check your answer

You're the Tiny Seed

Imagine that you are the Tiny Seed in our story.  Describe how you feel as you are growing.  Tell how hard it was to make your journey.  Use what you know about seeds and how they grow to help you write an Informational Story.

A Magnificently Magical Plant

Pretend you could grow a magical plant that would grow anything you wanted at the top.  Tell what it would be and why you would grow your plant.  Then describe your plants.  Tell where you would would plant them and how you would have to care for them.

Survival on an Island

Imagine that you are traveling around the world.  Your ship has dropped you off at a small island where you must care for yourself.  Write instructions about how you will use the plants to make a meal or a useful object.  Your instructions should have at least three steps.  Post your writing as a Comment.

Here again are the directions on how to Post a Comment: 
1. Click on the word "Comment"
2. Type your message. Check for and fix mistakes.
3. Click on "Select profile" below.
4. Choose "Name/URL"
5. Type in your First Name only with your Last Name initial. 
6. Click on "Post Comment"
7. Type in the Secret Password on the page
8. Click "Post Comment" again.

Welcome to The Blogosphere

Hello Students,

Welcome to your blog.
On this site we'll be discussing what we're learning about in class.  You can write about what the teacher posts or write about what a fellow student posts or comments on.
Please keep your post on the subject and always be polite and positive.  It's okay to disagree, but it's not okay to put someone's ideas down or be disrespectful.
If you have an idea how to make this site better, let your teacher know.

Check back often to see what you and other second graders from all around Penn-Trafford are writing about.

Thanks.