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Wk 6 Math Minutes

This week in Math, we will continue estimating and rounding numbers. Previously, we were rounding numbers to the nearest ten and now the numbers will progress into rounding to the hundreds and tens using 3-digit numbers. Students are using number lines to see the relationship between the benchmark numbers and the mid point to plot a given number. Please remind your child to label their math homework with page and problems that are assigned. Also, please encourage them to use their best handwriting and skip lines between each problem, instead of cramming it altogether.

Here's a peek at our "human" number lines from this past week. 

Wk 6 Reading & Social Studies Notes

Wk 6 Reading & Social Studies Notes

We are continuing to add to our repertoire of reading strategies. This past week, we used the visualization strategy to help us better understand our texts. Students were challenged to make "mental pictures or movies" to help them understand what's happening. I read Scarecrow by Cynthia Rylant to students without showing the illustrations in the book. Students were challenged to listen closely to the clues the author gave and jot down a few notes. Next, students created a 4-frame movie clip of what they visualized. Students exceeded my expectations for this assignment. They were awesome!

The Reading Plus program continues to be giving us problems. At this point, I'm not assigning See Readers or Read Arounds. It's too difficult to get everyone online and maintain a connection without it stalling out or freezing. 

A couple of notes about our reading journals:

Students should bring the reading journal to class daily. We frequently add interactive activities and record our thoughts about reading inside. 

The reading log is the big focus of our reading journals. Students seem to have a difficult time understanding that they are not required to write about every single book they read at home. The first five pages (front and back) are dedicated as our reading log. It is a list of the books each child has read. They should record the title of the book, the date it was read, and the book's genre (fiction, nonfiction, biography, etc.). There is a model in the classroom for students to refer. I'm including an example below.

8-12     First Day Jitters                                                    F

8-13     No David!                                                            F

8-14     David Goes to School                                          F 

9-14     Scarecrow                                                            F

9-15     Cactus Hotel                                                        NF

9-16     Witches Chapter 3                                               F

9-17     Witches Chapter 4                                               F

We just wrapped up our geography unit with a hands-on project. Students had a lot of fun and showed their creative sides in being cartographers (map makers). Each student created a "Barefoot Island" of his or her own. Our maps are on display in the hall. If you get a chance, feel free to stop by to see them. They are most awesome! I will try to post some photos on Monday.

On Monday, we will begin our study of the Ancient Greeks. We will take a look at this important society and see how they still influence us today!

Wk 3 News

3rd Grade News

August 30 - September 4, 2015

Mrs. Richardson

Finally, we have completed all of the beginning of year assessments. We can finally get down to business! You will find that students will bring home a reading book on Monday and Wednesday of each week. On Monday, they are required to read a story and complete reading skills sheets. On Wednesday, students should read the story again and complete the selection test as practice. Homework will be turned in each morning and scored using the standards based rating scale of 1-4. The other nights, students should get their 20 minutes of reading practice.

Mrs. Scott

In Math this week, we will begin working on Addition and Subtraction with Regrouping. The students will build numbers with base ten blocks and work to “regroup” sets to set the basis for using the traditional algorithm the following week. Students will also start having math homework on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please be sure to look over your child’s work and talk with them about any questions they may have about their homework. There is a very informative page, prior to their assigned problems in the math book that provides great examples. Students have been shown how to label their notebook paper, write problems neatly, and skip lines between each problem. The teacher will be checking for these criteria when scoring on a 1-4 progress scale. Also, please remind your child that it is his or her responsibility to have their math book in their backpack each day for homework or as a resource in class. 

Mrs. Thornton

Starting last week, your child will receive a 1, 2, 3 on spelling assessments on Friday.  Technically, these are practice.  Every 5th week, we will have a standards based assessment, which will be a mixture of the words they have had thus far.  We are keeping all of our old words in our spelling sorts folder, so we will send those home that week for you to use as a study guide.  Also, I am really pushing proper handwriting with all students.  If they reverse a letter (use a ‘b’ in place of ‘d’), the word will be counted wrong.  Putting capital letters in the middle of the words and starting a word with a capital letter when it is not supposed to be, will also cause the word to be counted wrong.  By the time the students are in third grade, they need to be held accountable for these mistakes.  Thank you for your support and all the work you have done so far to make this school year start off with a BANG!!

Shout Outs!

Congratulations to the following students for a job well done! 

• Breanna Gordy and Addison McGuire had the highest number of Class Dojo points and received a Dojo monster of their very own.  
• Benjamin Foley is the Coder of the Week according to Mr. Lemons! Benjamin did 288 lines of coding! Wow! J

Homework may be found in your student's binder.

If you have questions or comments, please send us an email or Class Dojo message.