Synergize! Working together is better.

The kids of Seven Oaks (Les Sept Chênes) gather at their local park one afternoon, and are invited to play a game of soccer with a scary (and very good) team.  At first, it is a catastrophe!  Goob is looking for bugs, Lily is picking flowers, and little Allie scores a goal for the wrong team!  Sophie gives a pep talk to her friends, and encourages them to play together as a team.  Jumper is great at scoring goals, Goob is great at blocking, and Allie just needs to know which side is which.  The game turns around, and the friends play together as a team to win the game.

Here are our words for this week...  sorry for the delay! 
Mini flashcards for Chapter 6 are available on google docs.
 

1. l’équipe - team

2. les atouts - assets  (personal assets/abilities)

3. aider - to help

4. un camarade de classe - a classmate

5. respecter - to respect

6. être gentil - to be nice/kind

7. encourager - to encourage

8. avec - with

9.  l'esprit d'équipe - team spirit

Language homework has arrived!

In your child's binder, you will find a new section with phoneme practice sheets.  This is to be used for enrichment/homework at home, and morning work in class.  It should stay in the binder, and can be done at your child's own pace.  Behind the loose worksheets, there is a packet for you to refer to if you need the words for the images.

Poeme : Le Ver

In Grade 2, students have begun Poetry Journals, which they will add to regularly.  Our latest poem, Le ver  (the worm) was chosen because we adopted a terrarium full of meal worms on Thursday!  The students were risk-takers, as they confronted their fears and touched the wriggly creatures.  Some students were inquirers - testing to see if the meal worm would come to them if placed on the table, if they preferred to climb up or down, if they liked being on a tissue or their hand.  The students got a chance to name their meal worm friends before placing them in the terrarium to live.

Le ver

Un ver de terre
Rêvait souvent
De devenir un ver luisant.

Pour se donner plus blanche mine,
Il se roula
Dans la farine.

Mais quand le ver
Éternua
Blanche farine s’envola.

Alors, le ver
Fut si déçu
Qu’il fit un trou et disparut.

                                     Pierre Coran

Also of special note:  

Yesterday was Madame Wilson's birthday!  Make sure to wish her a "bon anniversaire" if you see her this week.  

Vocabulary Words for Chapter 5

Here are our chapter 5 vocab words:

répéter - to repeat

comprendre - to understand

les yeux - eyes 

les oreilles - ears

le coeur - the heart

perdre - to lose

trouver - to find

chercher - to look for

écouter - to listen

parler - to speak

As an added bonus, mini flashcards are available on google docs.  Print them off for extra practice!

Coffee and a Good Cause

Starting October 4, Starbucks retail stores and participating grocery stores will feature specially marked bags of Gold Coast Blend® – Morning Joe Edition coffee with $5 DonorsChoose.org donation stickers for customers to direct funding to the public school classroom project of their choice.  Remember, we have a Grade 2 project already up on Donors Choose:  http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/search.html?zone=223&community=9310:3&school=97474

TFS Back to School Night

TFS Back to School Night is on Thursday, September 15

This is one of very few adult only events in the French School. You will learn about our plans for the school year and have the opportunity to visit your child’s classroom to gain a better understanding of our academic and social goals.

The event will begin promptly at 6:00 and will be over by 8:00.  

Vocabulary Words for Chapter 4

Here are this weeks vocabulary words - chapter 4 is entitled "Lily Jardine" (Lily Gardens) and centers around Lily the skunk and her idea to make a garden.  She found a way to make her garden project a "win-win" situation, by fulfilling both her mother's needs, and her own... and a bounty of fruits and vegetables was the result.

1. niveler la terre - level the earth

2. planter les graines  - plant the seeds

3. désherber - to weed (pull out the weeds from the garden)

4. arroser- to water

5. les légumes - vegetables

6. le potager - kitchen garden (fruit and vegetable garden)

7. la récolte - the harvest

8. les fruits - fruit

Help your child practice the words a little each day - just like Pokey for his spelling test!

This week in Grade 2

Happy Labor Day (Fête du Travail) to all of our second grade families!  We have no school on Monday, in honor of Madame Jennifer's birthday.  Enjoy! :)

Work First, Play Later

This week, we read Chapter 3 of our book "7 habitudes des enfants heureux" - this chapter is about Pokey the porcupine and his dictée (spelling test).  Pokey knew the big spelling test was coming up but he kept putting off studying because there were so many fun things to do.  He did not do very well on the test because he waited until the night before to start cramming.  His friend Sophie helped him learn a very important lesson about procrastination.  We have to work/study first, then play after.  Pokey changed his ways - studying his vocabulary words a little each day (and even said "no" when his friends proposed to play instead). He did very well on his next test, and offered Sophie a gift for helping him study.

As such, here are our vocabulary words of the week.

1. réviser - to study

2. faire la sieste - to take a nap

3. mémoriser - to memorize

4. apprendre - to learn

5. atermoyer - to procrastinate

6. faire ses devoirs - to do homework

7. faire une dictée - to take a spelling test

8. épeler - to spell

9. écrire - to write

10. se souvenir - to remember

After-school book/math clubs  

Next Wednesday, afer-school book and math clubs are starting!  

Please note that there will be no bus service for the first week.  If your child is normally a bus rider, and is enrolled in after-school book/math club, PLEASE let us know if they should go on their normal bus, or if you want to pick them up after club at 5:00.  If we do not hear from you, your child will be sent home on their regular 3:30 bus.