June 2014

Dear Parents,

Reading is an important part of learning. Reading books will not only take your child on many exciting adventures but will also help develop your child’s reading comprehension, vocabulary, writing, and spelling skills. This summer the second grade students will be asked to read many books for the Principal’s Challenge. Attached you will find a suggested book list.

We encourage you to help your child choose books that are on their reading level. Have your child read out loud to check for comprehension and promote fluency throughout the summer. We also want to thank you for your support and we look forward to a wonderful and fulfilling school year.

Sincerely,

The Second Grade Teachers ☺

Fiction

At Mary Blooms by Aliki

The Big Honey Hunt by S. Berenstain

Dr. Seuss books

Tale of Peter Rabbit by B. Potter

Clocks and More Clocks by P. Hutchins

The Arthur series

The Nate the Great series

The Amelia Bedelia series

The Magic Tree House series

The Henry and Mudge series

Stone Soup by M. Brown

Penguins for all People by D. Freeman

Bedtime for Frances by H. Heine

The Cam Jansen series

Strega Nona by T. DePaola

Johnny Appleseed by G. Nornan

The Egg Tree by K. Milhous

The Stories Julian Tells series

Matt Christopher books

The Ramona Quimby series

Jenny Archer series

The Bailey School Kids series

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

Amber Brown series

The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes

The Candy Corn Contest, Fish Face by Patricia Giff

Bunnicula, Howliday Inn by James Howe

Busybody Nora, “E” is for Elisa by Joanna Hurwitz

Mr. Potter’s Pet, The School Mouse by Dick King-Smith

Horrible Harry series

Baloney, Math Curse, Time Warp Trio series by Jon Scieszka

Heidi by Joanna Spyri

Charlotte’s Web, Stuart Little by E.B. White

Non-Fiction

Books about the War of 1812

•Dolley Madison

•James Madison

•Francis Scott Key

•The American Flag

•The Constitution

Books about the Civil War

•Harriet Tubman

•Abraham Lincoln

•Clara Barton

•Slavery

•The Underground Railroad

Picture book biography series by David Adler

Books about the moon, planets, stars, sun, whales by Seymour Simon

Gail Gibbons Books

Greek Myths

Ancient Greece

Poetry

Beast Feat, Bing Bang Boing, On the Wing by Douglas Florian

Dog Days, New Kid on the Block, Zoo Doings by Jack Prelutsky

Falling Up, Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

Fairy Tales and Folk Tales

The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina by Hans Christian Andersen

The Irish Cinderlad, The Korean Cinderella by Shirley Climo

Briar Rose, Rapunzel by The Brothers Grimm

June 2014

Dear Parents,

Your children will embrace a new experience in September. We are sure that they are well prepared and are ready for the challenge of second grade. You will see them develop independence, responsibility, and mature spiritually and academically right before your eyes. During the 2014-2015 school year we will be learning many interesting things and take part in different projects.

In order to help make the transition into second grade easier, here are a few things you can work on over the summer vacation.

1.Read every day. Encourage your child to take part in the Principal’s Challenge and try to visit your public library often.

2.Do a little math every day. Practice basic addition and subtraction facts. If you would like, you can introduce and practice time and money with your child and the use of flash cards to help skill confidence. You may also want to play with learning toys, manipulatives, and play games in the car.

3.Write a little each day. Keeping a journal will help your child develop good writing habits, strengthen grammar, spelling and vocabulary skills, as well as develop their creative side.

4.Encourage independence. Give your child simple chores. Some suggestions are: set the table, get the mail, clear the table and even cleaning up after themselves. This will help build their self-esteem and promote responsibility. It will also give your child a sense of accomplishment. In addition, please also help your child learn to tie his/her own shoelaces.

We hope you and your family have a wonderful and relaxing summer vacation. We look forward to seeing you in September!

Sincerely,

The Second Grade Teachers