GRADE TWO GENERAL STUDIES

Overview

Second graders are encouraged to develop the skills to help them acquire greater learning proficiency as they progress in their education. Teachers foster the students' natural curiosity and eagerness to learn. Students are aided in accepting new responsibilities, constructively using unstructured time, and working with neatness, care, and accuracy.

Language Arts

Using a wide repertoire of decoding strategies, students begin to make sense of chapter books and other more complex reading materials. They get pleasure from working on reading with expression and comprehension; they write complete sentences and paragraphs to express specific ideas. They also work on developing their proofreading skills and on revising their own work. Students develop their auditory perception and comprehension skills through a series of listening labs. The students' vocabulary and acquisition of language expand as they practice retelling and rewriting class texts. Their critical skills grow as they recognize and enjoy a growing number of narrative elements and learn the differences between various genres of literature.

Mathematics

Students work with number lines, charts, geoboards, and patterns to learn concepts of multiplication order, fractions, division, number patterns, and numbers to one thousand. They develop their critical thinking skills by working in peer groups and using logic and visual thinking. Students use technology such as calculators and CD-ROMs to help them illustrate and solve problems. They expand on their knowledge base of measurement units using manipulatives, such as scales and thermometers.

Science

Students learn about the life cycle through a textbook and by observing plant life in the laboratory. They grow their own plants and learn how to record and compare observed data. Students study nutrition with the aid of charts, Venn diagrams, and hands-on models, and learn about how environment affects the growth of an organism. A study of the earth, sun and solar system emphasizes how organisms must compete to obtain the earth's limited resources.

Social Studies

Students study the different communities to which they belong, including those of neighborhood, city, state, and nation. They distinguish between rural, urban, and suburban communities and various ethnic groups. With charts, graphs, models, and projects, students begin to learn about the United States, her people, and the laws that govern them. They study the election of leaders and the rights and responsibilities of all American citizens.

Art
Students construct sculpture from clay as well as found objects and create realistic forms, such as animals. Artists studied include Grandma Moses. Students learn about the color wheel, paint and are introduced to printmaking.

Music
Students enjoy a two-semester program involving singing, programs, and music appreciation. They meet weekly in a music room equipped with musical instruments and stereo equipment, where they learn the basic musical tools of melody, tempo, dynamic, and singing on key. Students begin studying orchestral instruments by both sight and sound, and begin working on vocal and percussive canons. Students sing songs in English and Hebrew and prepare for their Chag ha-Chumash. Students hone their organizational skills by being responsible for their own music folders and materials. Students enjoy Friday afternoon Shabbat assemblies and special programs, including concerts. They perform in Zimriah, a yearly musical program linked with a particular chag or calendar event.

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