A Grade 2 Social Studies outcome for grade 2 is to understand how Canmore has grown and changed over time. In our study we made a timeline of the important events in Canmore’s past. We discussed the Nakoda First Nation and how they were the first people in the Bow Valley, the train stop for the Canadian Pacific Railway by what is now elevation place, the beginning and ending of coal mining, the 1988 Olympics and how people have always be drawn to the mountains.
On Friday, the grade 2s enjoyed a Day in the Past. The teachers organized 4 stations and the students dressed in a variety of clothing to reflect Canmore’s past.
M.J. had some fun using the green screen to put students into the past!

Last Monday, we headed out on a field trip to visit a stream so we can compare and contrast small, crawling and flying insects. And begin to recognize their basic needs. At the same time we went for a walk into the past to understand Canmore’s mining history. We ended the walk at the Lamp House by Canmore’s #2 Mine entrance.

The second part of the unit was for the students to design, build and test a boat. Over a few days the students designed and collected the materials they needed to build. On Friday, the students built, tested and rebuilt boats!

The grade 2s learned about Boats and Buoyancy through targeted discovery and play. The goal was for the students to explore what floats, sinks and what makes a boat buoyant, stable and balanced. While the students explored they were encouraged to articulate their thinking.

As part of an ongoing dance unit, I invited in the wonderful Miss. Jasmine to teach the class how to dance! Woohoo!

One of the five topics of study in grade 2 science is Hot and Cold. Within this unit of study the students need to understand how insulation is used to keep things hot or cold. The students were tasked with designing a device to keep an ice cube cold for 2 hours. First step was to look at the materials in the Tinkering Lab and design a device. They were given 3 tries to tinker and improve their device.

Collaborating with our teacher librarian, Mrs. Feherty, we designed a second measurement unit for mass. We launched the study using the book Equal Shmequal by Virginia Kroll.

The students headed up to the Tinkering Lab to measure objects using a variety of scales. The students were asked to balance the scales using a variety of objects with washers as the referent. Finally, the students created an iMovie to document their learning.

An outcome in the grade 2 math curriculum is for students to be able to use nonstandard units to measure length and mass. We used blocks to measure the different lengths of our body parts. We collected, graphed and interpreted the data we collected.

When the class completed this project we headed up to the Tinkering Lab to race Duplo cars using popsicle sticks to measure how far they could propel their car.