Otis Elementary November 13, 2000

Second Grade class at Otis was our Classroom of the Week 11/13!

This second grade class is made up of 31 students whose first language is Spanish. The emphasis in the classroom this year is teaching English As a Second Language, through the content areas. What better way to experience the use of language than by the study of a subject that they enjoy; Dinosaurs. They have not only gained knowledge about dinosaurs, but also of world geography and climates. They enjoy being read to, and are also becoming avid independent readers. They are learning to use their second language orally and are beginning to express themselves in written form as well. They worked with a great deal of enthusiasm in writing the letters to Dr. Sereno and his team, and are anxiously waiting a response.

More information
Elba deJesus (Classroom Teacher)

Otis Elementary

Click to see the students!

Otis Elementary School
525 N. Armour Street
Chicago, Illinois 60622
Principal: James Cosme

Otis is an elementary school with approximately 700 students. It is located in the West Town neighborhood in Chicago, an area which is currently undergoing new development through gentrification. The school has developed a rich and varied curriculum to meet the multiple intellectual needs of its students. The student population for the 1999 school year was 83.3% Hispanic, 8.8% African American, 7.5 % White and .3% Native American.

Our Questions

Students have written letters to the expedition team. Included in these letters are their questions and predictions of the team's responses. All of the letters will be sent to the field and team will mail a letter in response. Stay tuned for the letter from the Expedition Team in December!

Lesson Plan

Click here to see the lesson plan. (Download for Word here )

Student Gallery

Poster Board Collage

More student artwork to come: