Most of us have heard of the “summer slide” that occurs when students are out of school for 2 plus months. Here are some tips for making the most of your summer and keeping your child’s brain engaged!
*Please keep in mind that every teacher will be prepared for a larger than usual slide when we (hopefully) return to school in August. Do not stress about trying to “make-up” for lost time or pushing your child too hard this summer.*
This is a huge packet of practice sheets that you can print and complete this summer to review 2nd grade skills and get ready for 3rd grade. 2ndGradeSummerPacket
iReady will be available until July 29th! This is the easiest way to provide your child with reading and math practice that is tailored to his/her individual needs. The goal is 45 minutes of Reading and 45 minutes of Math per week.
Bay Meadows has created its own list of Summer Learning Goals. Students will be acknowledged and rewarded for outstanding effort reaching these goals when we return to school in August. Please note that your child WILL have access to Study Island since he/she is an incoming 3rd grader!
Read, read, read and read some more this summer! Take weekly trips to the library (if they are open!) and help your child select high-quality books in a variety of genres (realistic fiction, fantasy, informational, historical fiction, mysteries, biographies, poetry, traditional literature, etc.). You can also continue reading books online using Epic! https://www.getepic.com/ Keep building those comprehension skills. Your child is bringing home his/her Reading Notebook which contains all of the strategies and skills we learned about this year. It is a wealth of knowledge and perfect for a summer review. Have your child create a “Reading Journal” or use post-it notes to record their thoughts as they read. During or after reading, tell your child to record his/her visualizations, connections, questions and predictions. This will keep your child engaged as he/she reads and will boost comprehension. Summarizing and retelling are great comprehension builders, as well. Also, remember to have your child read aloud to build fluency.
3rd-5th grade students also get to participate in the Sunshine State program! Summer is a great time to get a head start on reading these award-winning books. Here is a list of next year’s 15 books.
https://www.floridamediaed.org/uploads/6/1/4/2/61420659/3-5_2020-21_ssyra_annotated_list.pdf
Here’s a copy of a great interactive reading log your child can use to incorporate some writing into his/her daily reading: IndependentReadingLogs
And here are some question/answer stems to use as you read with your child. I love the format of these because they have the students answer in complete sentences by “flipping the question” to begin their answer. The students have heard me say “flip the question” a million times this year so this will keep that habit fresh! You can also have your child answer these questions in writing to keep their writing skills up, particularly those pesky conventions (capitalization, punctuation and spelling). Just print the cards and cut them apart. Your child will read the question and then literally flip (turn) the card to answer it. FlipItRLAskandAnswerQuestionsFreebie
We have been reading the book series The Sisters 8 by Lauren Baratz-Logsted. We have already read the first 3 books in the series, and many of the students have expressed interest in finishing the series over the summer. These books might be a bit challenging for your child to read independently (most of them are written on a 4th grade level), but they would be great to read WITH your child. Here are the books in the series: Book 1: Annie’s Adventures; Book 2: Durinda’s Dangers; Book 3:Georgia’s Greatness; Book 4: Jackie’s Jokes; Book 5: Marcia’s Madness; Book 6: Petal’s Problems; Book 7: Rebecca’s Rashness; Book 8: Zinnia’s Zaniness; Book 9: The Final Battle…For Now. The publisher’s website has tons of fun resources and activities to enrich your reading. I definitely recommend checking it out! http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/sisters8/
Keep building vocabulary by creating your own “Juicy Word of the Week” program at home! You can find “juicy words” anywhere- television, movies, radio, newspapers, magazines, children’s books, advertisements, signs, etc. Pick one word a week to focus on. Complete one of these word maps about the word to help you really analyze its meaning: Juicy Word of the Week Word Map PDF. Then keep track of how many times you hear it, say it, or use it using this chart: Juicy Word of the Week Tracking PDF.
There are TONS of math websites and apps to help your child review 2nd grade skills and even get a jump start on third grade skills. IXL is a terrific website with games broken down by grade level, subject area and specific skill. I highly recommend checking it out: http://www.ixl.com/
Feel free to email me with any questions you may have over the summer, or next year and beyond! Happy learning!!!
Also…don’t forget to order next year’s supply pack ASAP! Here is the information from Ms. Gael:
You will get a discount if you order early. EPI will deliver the supply pack to your home the week of July 27th. You will then bring the supply pack with you to Meet your Teacher on August 7. See flyer for details. Be sure to order for the grade your child will be in next school year. You also have the option of not using the supply pack company and shopping on your own. I have included that supply list as well. However, in these uncertain times, I am thankful that EPI has allocated supplies for our school at their warehouse and can fill the orders. The option of using EPI supply packs will help keep us safe by giving you the option of not having to shop around town. With the recent stimulus money, perhaps ordering now will help your budgeting in the fall and give you a discount if you order in the early ordering window. Remember the packs you order will not arrive until the week of July 27th. Bay Meadows will not receive any extra supply packs and you must ship to your home. Stay safe Koalas. Wishing everyone well. If you have the ability to purchase a supply pack for a student in need, we could use a few packs for each grade level. Just pick your pack and let your child’s teacher know you are buying one to donate. Then bring the pack in for Meet the Teacher and we will get the pack to a student in need. https://www.educationalproducts.com/shoppacks/
