Homework
Students will be given a math worksheet for the week, and are expected to turn it in by the end of the week. Second graders will also begin to take a weekly spelling quiz. A list of suggested words to practice at home is located on the information section on this website. In addition, students are expected to read for at least 20 minutes each night. Below is a list of activities that you can do with your child to make homework fun!
Play board games
Have your child read the directions to a game and then explain them to you. This activity has your child retelling major events in their own words. As you play, ask questions about the directions, then have your child point out the corresponding passage in the written directions.
Read Recipes
Have your child help make dinner. First, have your child read the entire recipe to you. Then have them read each step and even help measure ingredients. You could ask students to restate the step using their own words. This activity will help in reading, organization in writing, and math. You'll have a yummy reward at the end also!
Watch TV
It sounds like a paradox to have your child watch tv to help reading, but I promise it will work. Simply turn on your child's favorite show (it helps if it is one that they have seen multiple times) and mute the volume. Then turn on the closed captions. At first, your child may only be able to read a few words, but you will notice that they will become a faster reader the more they practice. This helps fluency, as well as using picture cues to figure out words.
BANG
This is a game that we have in class. Simply take an empty kleenex box and put in flashcards. These cards could be pictures of spelling words that students would need to spell out, high frequency words, or math flash cards. In addition, there should also be some cards that say BANG! Sitting in a circle, each player draws a flash card and has to answer (read the card, spell the card, or answer the math fact) within 3 seconds. If the player gets the card correct, they get to keep the card. If it is wrong, they put it back in the box. When a player draws a BANG card, they put all of their cards back in the box. They player with the most cards at the end of the game wins.
(image from http://campslop.blogspot.com/)
Computer Time
Raz Kids, First in Math, and Sumdog are excellent examples of websites that help your child with their reading and math. We will continue to add links to our website as we find them, to further encourage your child.
