Scientific investigation and systems are two main focal points this year. They are the basis for a great deal of our work together in 2nd grade. Increasing inquiry all around, but particularly in science and social studies, will include a great deal of hands-on scientific investigation.
To measure student growth, Mrs. Frisbee, Mrs. DiSilvestro, and have administered a benchmark assessment which asked students to write how they would conduct a science experiment. These scores will be recorded and we will administer a mid year and end of year assessments to measure how far students have grown in their understanding of scientific investigation.
The great news is that this means we'll have plenty of experiences starting next week when we introduce the steps of the scientific method. Check back for more details next week.
There's a good chance you may have heard about systems at some point this week. Mrs. Frisbee and Mrs. DiSilvestro's classes learned about systems using a fishbowl as an example. Systems have boundaries, elements, inputs, outputs, and interactions that cause them to be functional or dysfunctional. That's a lot of new vocabulary for the first week of school, but our 2nd graders did a fabulous job and Mrs. Frisbee's class was able to apply their new understanding of this concept to prove that a classroom is also a system. Mrs. DiSilvestro's class is also scheduled for this lesson.
We will use the concept of systems throughout the year, and across all disciplines, as we study how language, mathematics, weather, and civilizations for example are types of systems and are made up of other systems.
To measure student growth, Mrs. Frisbee, Mrs. DiSilvestro, and have administered a benchmark assessment which asked students to write how they would conduct a science experiment. These scores will be recorded and we will administer a mid year and end of year assessments to measure how far students have grown in their understanding of scientific investigation.
The great news is that this means we'll have plenty of experiences starting next week when we introduce the steps of the scientific method. Check back for more details next week.
There's a good chance you may have heard about systems at some point this week. Mrs. Frisbee and Mrs. DiSilvestro's classes learned about systems using a fishbowl as an example. Systems have boundaries, elements, inputs, outputs, and interactions that cause them to be functional or dysfunctional. That's a lot of new vocabulary for the first week of school, but our 2nd graders did a fabulous job and Mrs. Frisbee's class was able to apply their new understanding of this concept to prove that a classroom is also a system. Mrs. DiSilvestro's class is also scheduled for this lesson.
We will use the concept of systems throughout the year, and across all disciplines, as we study how language, mathematics, weather, and civilizations for example are types of systems and are made up of other systems.