Second Grade
Laurel's Second Grade girls explore two related themes. We look at Native Americans of the Northeast, Plains and Northwest Coast in the Fall and early Winter. We'll move on to Lake Erie: it's history and preservation in late Winter and Spring. The Essential Questions that guide both social studies topics include:
• How do different cultures view and use land?
• Whose land is it? How do we decide?
• What makes land valuable?
• How does where we live affect how we live?
• What is our responsibility in how we use our land?
• How can I make a difference?
For each region, the girls will learn Native American way of life, spirituality, legends and livelihood. We also address the exchange of cultures between the European settlers and the Native Americans. At the heart of the study of Lake Erie is a Service Learning project where the girls will "adopt a beach". We visit this site several times, clean it, and study the water quality. Woven throughout the themes are arts and craft projects, cooking, mapping, and the writing of legends and myths. We incorporate hands-on experiences through field trips to Laurel's Butler Campus, the Western Reserve Society Museum, the Indian Museum and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
The math curriculum, Everyday Math, emphasizes the building of concepts, the development of competence in fundamental skills, and the application of a variety of thinking strategies. Learning experiences focus on problem solving through thinking and reasoning quantitatively, spatially, and logically. The girls use numerous tools including manipulatives and computers to build a base of functional skills and an understanding of mathematical concepts. The girls learn how to solve problems in a variety of ways which work for their individual learning styles.
The language arts curriculum focuses on reading, writing, listening, speaking, and spelling. Students write in many genres- poetry, journals, narratives, letters, reports, and stories- sometimes in support of our theme studies. In writing workshops, they learn to work from rough drafts through revision, proofreading and, finally, to the publishing of finished pieces.
The literature-based program encourages the girls to increase their appreciation of books and reading, develop proper speech habits, enlarge vocabulary, think creatively, associate ideas, organize ideas in sequence, and develop their powers of visual perception and auditory discrimination.
Another important component of the second grade curriculum is virtues. Every month the Primary School focuses on one virtue such as respect, honesty, or compassion, and we explore how these help us to become better people. Some of the ways in which we explore these virtues are through play, literature, discussions, and activities with our Pre-Primary buddies. The virtues curriculum is laid out as a two-year cycle, offering age-appropriate reading selections and activities for each grade level. Additionally, all Primary School students participate in various community service activities throughout the year.
