Week of December 12, 2016

Hello Families!  I hope everyone has had a great weekend and stayed warm.  I can't believe that we are winding down 2016 this week.  The students have worked so hard over the past few weeks and are making great progress!  I am looking forward to a fun filled week together!  We will continue our study on Holidays around the world as well as finish our novel, Christmas in Camelot. Our spelling and vocabulary words will remain the same and the students will take their test on both Wednesday.
In math, we will work more on subtracting 2 digit numbers with regrouping.  My goal is for all the students to master this skill by the end of the week.

Here is a look at our week ahead:
Military Monday

*Please wear red, white and blue to school!







Friday, December 16th-  Bojangles Sales 7:30 am in the car rider line.
Money raised will help fund our annual "Arts Day"

Week of December 5, 2016

Hello Families!
   I hope everyone is doing well and getting into the holiday spirit!   We have been working hard on many second grade skills.  Please continue to read every night at home and have your child complete homework assignments each night.  We started a new spelling and vocabulary list today.  The students will not take a test on these until Tuesday, December 13th.  As the weather gets colder, please have your child bring a jacket to school. Thank you!

Here is a look at our week!
This week our Holiday Shop is open! Students can bring in money and shop for their families at school!  It is open from 7:30-8:30 and 11:30-2:30 every day through Friday.

Smart Snack Guidelines

Happy Holidays, Parents!
As we approach the holiday season, we want to remind you of several school procedures that we hope you will be mindful of during your visits to Pontiac. First, instructional time is a priority and we want to remind all of our parents to please be mindful of interruptions to the classroom. Please minimize early dismissals and late arrivals. Are you familiar with the Smart Snacks guidelines? The Smart Snacks in Schools federal legislation began on July 1, 2014. This federal legislation significantly impacts how we have “snacks” in schools. As we work diligently to educate ourselves and navigate a new piece of legislation we want to provide ourselves and Richland School District Two a safety net to protect federal funding for our schools. Pontiac Elementary has adopted a practice to eliminate birthday snacks with any snacks that violate the Smart Snacks guidelines. You are welcome to join your child for his/ her birthday during lunch/ recess. Below are a few suggested alternative ways you may want to celebrate your child’s birthday at school:  Lunch with your child (You may bring a special treat for your child only.)  Come play/facilitate a game with your child’s class during recess  Read a book to your child’s class The safety of our children is very important to us. If someone else is picking up your child, it is necessary that you send a note with your child. We will call you to verify this written authorization prior to releasing your child. Without authorized permission from a custodial parent, we will not release your child. Thank you for recognizing how important this practice is for the safety of your child. As always, your continued support is appreciated. You are welcome to visit your child’s classroom anytime! Our doors are open to our parents as your partnership is vital to your child’s academic success!
 Sincerely, Katie Barber, principal

Happy Thanksgiving

Hello Families!  I hope everyone enjoys your time with family and friends.  I am very thankful for you and your children. Thank you for sharing them with me everyday!  I look forward to seeing everyone on Monday, November 28th.

Monday, November 28th is Military Monday! Let's wear our Red, White and Blue in honor of those who serve our country!

Week of November 14, 2016

Hello Families!  What a great two weeks the students have had with Ms. Moser!  She and the students learned so much about government, elections and voting.  I am super proud of all they have accomplished over the past 2 weeks.  This week our focus will change over to Thanksgiving and Native Americans.  We will integrate our social studies standard of Native American contributions into our reading and writing curriculum.  Together as a class we will read, Buffalo Before Breakfast, a Magic Treehouse Story about two children who go back in time and meet a boy and his grandmother from the Lakota tribe.  Our reading focus will be on asking and answering text dependent questions, as well as making predictions and character study.  In the afternoons we will research the Lakota tribe,and locate on a US map where they live/lived, learn about their type of clothing, housing, tool, food and the contributions they have made on the life we live today.  It is going to be a great week in Second Grade!

 




**PLEASE REMEMBER to return your IMPACT AID FORMS as soon as Possible!

Second Grade Votes!

This past week our class learned about community, government, campaigning and elections. After reading three different children's books about running for president, the students were all able to vote for their favorite character.  Before casting their vote, they had to fill out a voter's registration card, make campaign posters and learn characteristics of each character.  We had a great time!  Check out our photo gallery!

 
 
 

Letter from Ms. Moser

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Hello! My name is Mary Claire Moser, and I have been interning in your child’s second grade class this semester. I have enjoyed getting to know your children over the past couple of months.
I am a Senior at the University of South Carolina, majoring in Early Childhood Education. I am from Charleston, South Carolina and enjoy going to the beach, shopping, solving Sudoku puzzles, and spending time with my friends and family.

Beginning Monday October 31, I will begin my full time student teaching. Mrs. Jackson and I will continue co-planning and co-teaching. I will be teaching whole group lessons, small group lessons, and working with students one on one. The concept of my two weeks is change. I will connect this concept into every subject during the next two weeks. Specifically, we will be learning about our government, community helpers, and forces and motion.

Thank you for allowing me to spend time in your child’s classroom to prepare me for my career as an early childhood educator.

If you have any questions or concerns I would love to hear them. You can contact me through Mrs. Jackson, by email or phone between 8 am and 3 pm at mmoser@richland2.org and (803)699-2700 ext. 81303


I look forward to teaching and learning from your children!

Sincerely,
Mary Claire Moser

Week of October 31, 2016

Hello Families!  This week Ms. Moser is excited to begin her two weeks of full time teaching. She has worked very hard to create lessons on government, elections and voting.  This will integrated into the reading curriculum.  The children are going to read Duck for President, Grace for President and My Teacher for President.  After reading the stories together, the class will participate in creating campaign posters for one of the candidates from our read alouds.  On Friday, November 4th, each second grader will have the opportunity to vote for one of our story characters.  The students will fill out a voter registration and get an I Voted sticker for their participation.

 


Other Happenings this week:
*10/31 Make Up Picture Day
*10/31 Military Monday

Red Ribbon Week

This week is National Red Ribbon Week.  Our school will be celebrating being Drug Free!

Monday, Oct. 24 I'm a "jean-ius." I'm drug free!

(wear jeans and red shirts for Red Ribbon Week)

Tuesday, Oct. 25 Heroes Stand Strong Against Drugs!

(wear camo)

Wednesday, Oct. 26 Team Up Against Drugs!

(wear your favorite team attire)

Thursday, Oct. 27 Don't Get Mixed Up in Drugs!

(tacky day)

Friday, Oct. 28 Use Your Head- Don't Do Drugs!

(hat day)

Flexible Seating... Finally

Hi Families! I hope you have all had a great week!  I am so excited to share with you that we now have all of our flexible seating up and running in our classroom!  The students enjoyed choosing their seats for the day and working at different places.  We wanted to share the excitement with you!

 

 

 

Super Social Studies

Over the past couple of weeks our class has been integrating social studies into our reading curriculum. The students learned so much about communities.  Here's a look into our learning!

Our class learned about Me On the Map!  After reading and learning about all the places we are a part of, the children made their own Me on the Map books.  They worked together with their peers to complete their books!

 

 


Last week we read about the Three types of communities; Urban, Rural and Suburban.  The students demonstrated their understanding by illustrating and describing each community.

 

Week of October 10, 2016

Hello Families!  I hope everyone is safe after our state's encounter with Hurricane Matthew.  Due to the unexpected days out of school last week, we will not start any new curriculum.  We will finish up our study of the 3 types of communities. The spelling and vocabulary words will also remain the same.  The students will take their assessments on Thursday morning.  The district schedule for the week is still the same.  The students will have a half day of school on Thursday, October 13th and a student holiday on Friday, October 14th.  I am looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow.

Week of October 3, 2016

Hello Families! I hope everyone is enjoying the cooler weather.  I can't believe it is already October. The students have been working very hard.  This week we will integrate our Social Studies and Reading instruction and learn about the types of communities. We will read about Urban, Rural and Suburban communities and learn the aspects of each.  The students will identify what type of community they live in and be able to write about it!  I am looking forward to the week ahead!

Here's What's Happening!
Fall Fest
Friday, October 7th from 6:00-8:00
 Volunteers!!
We are still in need of several volunteers for Fall Fest on October 7th to help run stations!
There are 4 shifts available: Shift 1 - 6:00 - 6:30 Shift 2 - 6:30 - 7:00 Shift 3 - 7:00 - 7:30 ***we especially need volunteers during this 3rd shift*** Shift 4 - 7:30 - 8:00

Fall Fundraiser
We are selling McDonald's cards.  Please send in your child's orders daily.  Sell! Sell! Sell!

Fall Fest Volunteers

We are still in need of several volunteers for Fall Fest on October 7th to help run stations! There are 4 shifts available:

Shift 1 - 6:00 - 6:30

Shift 2 - 6:30 - 7:00

Shift 3 - 7:00 - 7:30 ***we especially need volunteers during this 3rd shift***

Shift 4 - 7:30 - 8:00  

If you can help, please send an email to Ms. Rayner, lrayner@richland2.org, with the shifts you are available to work

Week of September 26, 2016

Hello Families!  I hope everyone had a great weekend!  I enjoyed meeting with many of you last week.  Thank you for taking the time to talk with me about your child's progress.  This week we are going to explore our social studies standards about community.  The students will learn about all the places they live.  (Columbia, South Carolina, USA, North America)  We are going to explore maps and learn how to read and interpret them.  We will integrate this concept into our reading instruction by reading poems about the different places we live.  Our vocabulary words will be focused on this social studies concept.

Here's a look at our week ahead!

9/30 Chick Fil A Sales to support Music Program, 7:30am


9/30 College Colors Day

Week of September 19, 2016

Hello everyone! I hope you are enjoying your weekend.  We had a great week last week and learned many  new things.  I have been in the process of assessing each student to determine their reading levels and will finish that up this week.  Once I know everyone's reading levels, I will develop Guided reading groups to use during our literacy instruction. These groups will help me meet all the needs of the readers in my classroom.  I am very excited to get that up and running.  We will continue to work on our basic math facts this week.  This will prepare the students for the upcoming second grade math skills.  Please work on these at home to build your child's fluency.  I am looking forward to our week ahead!

Here's What's Happening
9/19 Grits for Grandparents , 8:30—9:30

                                                                                                                  9/20 ZAXBY’S night 5 –8pm

9/22 11:30 Dismissal (Parent Conferences)

Week of September 12, 2016

Hello Families!  I hope everyone enjoyed their family time together this weekend! We finished up our study of magnets on Friday.  We will go back into our Treasures Reading series this week.  The students will have spelling and vocabulary words.   We will take the math portion of the MAP test this Wednesday morning.  I am excited for the week ahead.

Here's What's Happening!
9/15 Open House, K-5 6:00—7:30pm

9/15—22 Book Fair (Volunteers Needed!)

 9/16 Hat Day, $1 donation 9/19 Grits for Grandparents

Week of September 5, 2016

Hello Families!
  I hope everyone enjoyed their long weekend!  I had a great time with friends and family.  We have a lot going on during this short week.  The students will be involved in MAP testing tomorrow.  This is a standardized test our district gives to all students in 2- 5th grades.  Tomorrow they will take the reading portion.  Please make sure to get a good night's rest and eat a good breakfast in the morning.  Here are a few more happenings this week!

Picture Day- This Friday is picture day.  All students will have their picture taken, but packages will only be sent to those who pay for them.

Hat Day has been rescheduled for Friday, September 16th.


The Book Fair will begin next week.  September 15th- September 22nd
If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Mrs. Haltiwanger,

Week of August 29, 2016

Hello Families!  We had a great first full week of second grade!  The students are transitioning well into the rules and procedures of our classroom and building relationships.  I am looking forward to continuing our community building this week!

Important Dates:
8/31 College Colors Day
 Please wear the colors of your favorite college or university to support our
AVID program in grades 3-5.

 9/9 Hat Day, $1 donation will get you the chance to wear a hat to school all day. The proceeds go to our school's Walk for Life Team (Pretty in Pink at Pontiac)!

 9/15—22 Book Fair (Volunteers Needed!) If you are interested in helping out, please contact Mrs. Haltiwanger (Our media specialist) at 803-699-2700, ext. 81542.

Week of August 22, 2016

Hi Families!  We had a great start to our school year last week.  We worked on building relationships and rules and procedures.  We are going to continue to work on these while we jump right into our second grade curriculum this week. I'm looking forward to spending the week continuing to get to know each student!

Welcome to Second Grade!

Welcome to Mrs. Jackson's Class.  I am so excited to begin this year long journey with you!   We have so many exciting and fun things planned for you this year.   I would like to share a little about myself with you.  I have been married for 20 years to my husband Rusty and we have two boys, Nathan (5th grade) and Patrick (9th grade).  I enjoy spending time with friends and family, singing and dancing, and reading.

 I have lived in Columbia since I was 10.  I myself am a product of Richland 2 having attended North Springs Elementary, E.L. Wright Middle and Spring Valley High.  I graduated from Francis Marion University in 1995, and received National Board Certification in November 2015,  I feel as though teaching is my mission in life.  I love spending my days growing the minds of my students, building relationships with them, loving them unconditionally, and teaching them the importance of good citizenship.  My biggest downfall as an educator is the fact that I fall in love with my students every year, and find it super hard to let them go when our time together has come to an end.  When my previous students stop by to say hello it warms my heart.  My goal is to make a positive impression on the lives of the children I serve.  I look forward to all this year has to offer and learning and growing together.