Synthesizing, Economics and Research Writing

Fun Things to Share for you to use at home:
During our STAAR party, I introduced Mad Libs.  The kids had a GREAT time working with partners and creating funny stories.  Here are some links to sites where you can print more mad libs to enjoy as a family at home.

• CLASSROOM JR.COM
• MAD LIBS WEBSITE AND APP INFO
• FILL THESE OUT AND READ ONLINE (warning- there are ads on this site.)
• ONLINE MAD LIBS CALL WEB TALES

I also introduced them to a childhood favorite, READING RAINBOW.  

• YOU TUBE CHANNEL with videos
• INFORMATION ABOUT HOW TO GET THE APP OR ORDER THE VIDEOS

READING AND WRITING
We will get back into a more normal classroom routine this week.  We will focus in reading on synthesizing.  I love this time of year and reading strategy.  This is when the kids get a chance to apply all their thinking to a text.  We begin to notice how a text can change our thinking as we read-- so powerful!  This week we will focus on synthesizing nonfiction.  We will start by using The Important Book by Margaret Wise Brown as our reading and writing model for synthesizing facts.  
This leads us nicely into finishing up reading many nonfiction sources as students work on their Planet Research.  After a few days to finish up research and note taking we will begin writing our informational expository texts on the planet your child is researching.  This is a new genre of writing for us, so we will look carefully to some mentor texts to see how veteran authors organize and structure their informational writing.  

SPELLING
New spelling words will go home on Wednesday.  The spelling homework menu is due on the following Tuesday (4/5) and the test will be on that Wednesday (4/6).  If you need support with spelling, please email me.  If you child looses his or her spelling words, please look at the spelling spiral as we write them down as part of our lesson on Wednesdays.

SOCIAL STUDIES
This week's work in Social Studies will have us focus on the economic concepts of: scarcity, opportunity cost, consumption, production and interdependence.  We are moving out of our work in personal economics and focusing more on business economics as we finish up our lessons.  We will be using these oldies, but goodies (ECON AND ME) to review concepts and promote discussion in class. 

HOMEWORK
Thank you for supporting good study and reading habits at home.  Students will have 20 minutes of nightly reading this week.  They should record the title and genre in their planner or a piece of paper at home to share with me the next day. 

LA and SS March 23-27

READING
This week we will review main idea.  Students will read from nonfiction texts and determine the main idea of sections of text.  We will work to have fun while reviewing using this rap to keep us on track!  

Mrs. Henley has worked with us the last two weeks to help us see how our reading strategies apply to the genre of standardized tests.  She will be with us for a final lesson this Friday.

A reading passage will come home on Monday.  Please encourage your child to practice the suggested reading strategies as he or she works through that reading.  The passage is due on Friday.  Children have 20 minutes of nightly reading everyday this week.


WRITING
This week we will begin a new genre of writing.  We will work to consume examples of fun and practical procedural texts.  After spending an hour and a half over spring break helping Isabella put together Leo Friends, there's a new reality for me on the importance of well written and illustrated procedural texts!
Mrs. Bolton, our WITS instructor, will be with us on Tuesday as we continue to add to our writer's tool box.  We all love the energy and new ideas she brings to our instruction and learning.  

SPELLING
New spelling words will go home on Wednesday.  The spelling homework menu is due on the following Tuesday (3/31) and the test will be on that Wednesday (4/1).  If you need support with spelling, please email me.  If you child looses his or her spelling words, please look at the spelling spiral as we write them down as part of our lesson on Wednesdays.

SOCIAL STUDIES
We will move into a new unit of study for the 4th 9 weeks.  We will focus on Economics.  Yes, you read it correctly.  This week we will focus on some big ideas in economics: needs, wants, spending and saving.  This time of year it always becomes very clear which families discuss money with their children.  Please use the next few weeks to talk to your children about how you decide when to spend and when to save your money.  Discuss with them reasons you have a savings account.  Help reshape their cries for what they "need" and discuss what are our REAL needs and wants.

HOMEWORK
Thank you for supporting good study and reading habits at home. 

Update for 3/9-3/13 from Mrs. Ford

READING
This week we will finish up our review of inferring with fiction texts and move into thinking about how to create a summary of a fiction text.  We will introduce a strategy called CPR.  Students will learn that there are some necessary elements to include in a summary- characters, problem, resolution.
 
WRITING
Your children have written some FABULOUS expository essays.  This week we will finish up revising and editing these pieces so we can publish them to share with you at Publisher's Picnic.
Mrs. Bolton, our WITS instructor, will be back with us this week.  We all love the fresh new ideas she brings to our instruction and learning.  

SPELLING
The spelling homework menu is due on the following Tuesday (3/10) and the test will be on that Wednesday (3/11).  If you need support with spelling, please email me.  If you child looses his or her spelling words, please look at the spelling spiral as we write them down as part of our lesson on Wednesdays.

SOCIAL STUDIES
All third graders will take a quiz on 3/10 on the inventors, scientists and founding fathers we have covered over the last few weeks.  Please encourage your child to bring home his or her social studies journal.  They have been working hard to complete guided notes on each historical figure.  You can also reference the Social Studies Links page on this blog for more information.

HOMEWORK
Thank you for supporting good study and reading habits at home. 

LA and SS 3/2-3/6

READING
Your kids have done a great job reviewing nonfiction features over the last few weeks.  Last week we reviewed the concept of theme in reading.  What lesson or message does a book teach us?
This week we will work on reviewing inferring.  Our biggest challenge this week will be to have students work to find text evidence to support their inference.
WRITING
Your children have written some FABULOUS expository essays.  This week we will learn some new and revisit some old revision techniques as we prepare to finalize our essays.  We will have them published and ready to share with you at Publisher's Picnic.
Last week we had a great time on our WITS field trip to the Menil.  We responded to the art and poetry we were able to take in at this unique venue.  I was so proud of how well the kids were ready to try anything that they author's put in front of them.  Their writing from our WITS experiences will get turned into a published collection that we will also make sure is take home ready by Publisher's Picnic.
SPELLING
Spelling lessons start back this week.  Please look for NEW words to come home on Wednesday.  The spelling homework menu is due on the following Tuesday (3/10) and the test will be on that Wednesday (3/11).  If you need support with spelling, please email me.  If you child looses his or her spelling words, please look at the spelling spiral as we write them down as part of our lesson on Wednesdays.
SOCIAL STUDIES
We are finishing up our study on the Story of America.  Students will create a project on the inventors and scientists we have covered over the last few weeks.  Then, we will finish the week with a look at our founding fathers.  All third graders will take a quiz on 3/11 on the inventors, scientists and founding fathers we have covered over the last few weeks.  Please encourage your child to bring home his or her social studies journal.  They have been working hard to complete guided notes on each historical figure.  You can also reference the Social Studies Links page on this blog for more information.
HOMEWORK
Thank you for supporting reading at home.  Your child will bring home a letter and data report sheet from our Practice STAAR Benchmark this week in the Tuesday Newsday folder.  My big focus with this data is that I want your children to notice what they have learned this year.  Then, we will work together to help them keep learning and working on reading concepts that they struggled with on the benchmark.  Many of them have been focused on the score.  I'm less concerned with scores, and more concerned with learning.
One area that most kids struggled in was endurance.  If you look at the last 8-10 questions on the benchmark, they started missing more and more questions.  I've stressed in class the importance of reading at least 20 minutes each night and will appreciate your support at home.  The letter coming home will have question prompts for you to use with your child after they read each night.

Theme, Personal Narratives, Spelling, and Government!

Reading
We will move onto Theme later in the week.  There are many common themes found in books.  These are usually tied to a lesson that the main character learns at the end of the text.  Some examples of themes are: Courage, Acceptance, Kindness, Friendship, Responsibility, Perseverance and Honesty.  We will start by examining texts that we have previously read as a class.  Then, we will move onto analyzing our DEAR books.  Students will have to provide text evidence to support their choice of theme.  We will also read fables to determine theme.
Writing
In Writing, we are continuing our focus on Personal Narrative. This week, we will listen to a read aloud of My Rotten Red Headed Older Brother by Patricia Polacco.  Students will put the events in the text on the narrative arc.  Next, students will reconstruct a narrative.  They will be given an example of a student written personal narrative.  The narrative will be cut up into pieces.  Students will have to work in a small group to "put the narrative back together."  Then, students will have to come up with explanations of why the order works.  Lastly, we will create a quick-list of writing ideas that students can use when writing his/her own personal narrative.
Spelling
This week, your child will bring home new Spelling words on Wednesday.  I will meet with students in small groups to teach the new sort.  Students will practice the sort in class and then bring the words home to complete the Spelling Homework Menu.  I cannot post spelling words on the blog since student lists are differentiated each week and our spelling curriculum is copyrighted.  If you child cannot locate his or her words, please reference the spelling spiral. Each Wednesday after our small group lesson, I have the students write the spelling list in the correct sorts in their spiral so they can see a correct example as they practice throughout the week.    
Please send your child's Ziploc bag back to school on Wednesday to help him/her earn a homework coupon!  This coupon will be worth 2 points off the Spelling Menu homework.  Instead of completing 8 points, he/she will only  have to complete 6 points.  Please attach the coupon to the rest of the completed homework to be turned in next Tuesday.  Coupons cannot be saved up.  A student cannot turn in multiple coupons in one week.  The new homework and spelling test date will be written in your child's planner.
Social Studies
We are continuing our 9 weeks focus on Communities, Citizenship and Government.  Last week, we went through the voting process and now we have elected 2 Leadership Council Representatives!  Congratulations to Raul in Ms. Skrivanek's class and Avery in Mrs. Ford's class!  This week, we will focus on government leaders.  Students need to understand the leaders at each level of government: local/mayor, state/governor and nation or federal/president.

Fiction Elements, Visualizing, Good Citizens and Spelling Menu Practice

Reading- We will continue to discuss fiction text elements Students will be reminded of the importance of characters, setting, and plot (problem and solution) in fiction texts.  Then, we will move into visualizing.  This is an IMPORTANT reading strategy that helps kids and adults monitor comprehension as we read.  If we can't see it in our minds (visualize it) then we aren't understanding what's happening in the story.  We will focus on what words an author uses to help us create these images.

Writing- Your children have written two journal entries in their Writer's Notebooks.  Last week we learned about a sharing style called point.  The students reflected on what they liked about POINT and had this to say-- "You get to know someone better when you hear their story."  "I like that they told me something nice about my writing."  "It felt good to get a compliment."  As we work to write in a variety of ways this week, we will continue to use POINT as a way to reflect on our writing and get to know one another better.  

Word Work- This week, students will learn about our Spelling Menu.  We use a menu each week as part of our 3rd grade spelling homework.  Students will learn this week about each of the options on the menu and the where, when and what of spelling homework.  If you have access to a thesaurus and/or dictionary at home, great.  There are multiple choices about working with definitions, syllables,  synonyms or antonyms on our spelling menu. If you do not have access to a thesaurus, I will teach your child this week how he or she can check resources out from me each evening.

Social Studies- We will continue our work on Good Citizens this week in Social Studies.  Last week we learned about Ruby Bridges and Helen Keller.  This wee we will focus on Jane Addams, who started the Hull House, one of the very first community centers in America.  We will also learn about Clara Barton who was instrumental in starting the American Red Cross.  
Students will be encouraged to think about the power that volunteers have to make a community run well.  If you volunteer, please share what you do and why you do it with your child.
Towards the end of the week, we will learn about first responders in our community and nation.  Officer Miller will speak to our classes on Wednesday and we will have our Lunch With Heroes this week as well.  If there is anyone in your family or community circle who is a first responder, please talk about this person's commitment and dedication with your child.
Homework-Third graders will have 20 minutes of reading homework each night.  We checked out library books last Thursday, and will return to the library each week on Thursdays.  Students should record the book title in their planner each night to show that the required 20 minutes was completed.

Update from Mrs. Ford

Language Arts
Reading
In Reading this week we will be diving into the word of character traits and character development.  Good readers notice how a character may change throughout a story.  We will begin the week by brainstorming a list of character traits.  What words can we use to describe how the character is acting and feeling?  Then, we will review some books we have read to see if we can find text evidence to support a character's personality trait.  As the week progresses, students will look for this text support in their DEAR time (independent reading) book. 

Writing
 This week we will introduce our first writing genre study, personal narrative.  We will spend the next few weeks sharing examples of personal narratives and noticing and naming the parts of a narrative.  This week we will focus on learning the vocabulary for those parts (setting the stage, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution).
Spelling
Please remember that your child is responsible for completing 8 points and turning in  his or her homework on Thursday mornings.  Students may complete any assignment on the menu they wish.  If they choose to write their words 3 times this week, they may only use that assignments once this week to get 2 of the 8 points.  

Social Studies
In class, we will learn and discuss the words rights and responsibilities.  Students will also participate in a debate to determine if he or she thinks it would be best to live in FREEDOM TOWN (where anything goes) or LEADER TOWN (where one leader tells everyone how they can live.  It's always a great time to hear kids thoughts and watch them come around to understanding how our country decided on its form of government.  

This week we will discuss LEADERSHIP COUNCIL.  We will discuss qualities needed in a leadership council representative and the duties and responsibilities that go along with this leadership position.  Students will be allowed to nominate candidates.  A rubric will then be filled out and accompanied by the nominations to determine who will represent our classes this year.


 

Visualization, Connections and Community

Language Arts

Reading
I have been pulling your children in class to have them read for me.  I will be completing each child's reading assessment by the end of September. I am so thankful for the families who could meet with me last Saturday.  If your family did not meet with me last Saturday, then I will be pulling your child during class for him or her to read for me.
Our classes have been working on extending our ability to read independently during DEAR time (Drop Everything and Read)! 

Please know that your child's nightly homework is to read for 20 minutes. Then, he or she should write the title of the book and the book's genre in his or her planner.  I check everyday!  

In class we have started working on visualization.  Students have been asked to think about what images they see when they read or have words read to them.  We often refer to this as the movie in our mind.  They have been drawing their images for me and sharing them with the class.  These images that students create help solidify the meaning of the text.  If you can't picture it, you probably don't understand it!

We will review the idea of connects as the week closes, and work more closely with this next week.  Connections fall into three categories:  text-to-self, text-to-text, and text-to world.  We will begin this week to create text-to-self connections.  
We will read and then work together to think...
What about this story reminds me of something I have done?...something I have experienced?...someone I know?These connections draw us closer to the text while building comprehension.
Writing
Over the summer I kept a gratitude journal.  I would journal each day about something I was thankful for.  I've discussed my experience with my classes and we have taken on a gratitude challenge.  Our goal is to write down 300 things we are thankful for by the end of the year.  Each day during our journal time, students add to their gratitude list.  Then, they either select a topic, or I provide one for them to journal about.  Our journals are not a place where spelling, punctuation and capitalization are important.  They simply serve as a place for us to get our thoughts and ideas out of our heads and onto paper.  It's been a great experience watching your kids share their thinking and their thanks.

Spelling

This was our first week for students to receive spelling words.  
Starting next week (this is a practice week), they should practice spelling and sorting the words each night using the activities found in the menu.  We will write the words in the correct sort inside their spelling spirals for them to have as a reference tool all week. 
I will collect spelling homework on Thursday mornings.  Thursday night your child's only spelling homework is to prepare for the spelling test on Friday. 
During the spelling test on Friday, students will be asked to spell and sort the words correctly.
This process will become routine and familiar with time.  Take deep breaths, and feel free to email me with any questions.  REMEMBER, this week is practice and NEXT week is our first week... so we will GO SLOW! 
Social Studies

We are continuing to focus on citizenship.  This week we have talked about Jane Addams, Ruby Bridges, Helen Keller, and Clara Barton.  These women made HUGE contributions to their communities.  We also took some time this week to focus on community heroes in honor of 9/11.  Students will have lunch with these heroes on Friday and present them with thank you notes and bookmarks.

Mrs. Ford is BACK!

Happy New Year!

Welcome back to school, and back to third grade with Mrs. Ford!
I missed all of you while I was gone.
Here's a little look at who I was spending my break with...

Language Arts

Reading- We will spend the rest of this week and next week reviewing inferences and beginning to analyze questions using QAR (Question Answer Relationship).  QAR is useful as a tool for conceptualizing and developing comprehension questions. "QAR creates a way of thinking about the types of questions that are most appropriate for different points in guiding students through a text. Questions asked before reading are usually On My Own QARs. They are designed to access relevant prior knowledge. In creating questions asked during reading it is important to balance text based and inference questions. Search and Locate QARs should dominate and should build to the Author and Me QARs. Finally, after reading questions are primarily Author and Me and On My Own QARs. Please remember that too many Right There QARs may indicate and overemphasis on literal, detail questions. QAR is useful as a student tool in providing a basis for three comprehension strategies: locating information, determining text structures and how they convey information, and determining when an inference would be required. It initially helps children understand that information from both texts and their knowledge base and experiences are important to consider when answering questions. It helps students search for key words and phrases to locate the appropriate information for answering questions. Finally, QARs help students recognize whether or not information is present in the text and, if not, that it is necessary to read “between or beyond the lines” to answer the question." (the reading lady)
Reading homework is back on track.  Please have students check the reading blog to record homework.

Writing- Students have finished writing a personal narrative.  We will be working the next two weeks on letter writing.  Students will receive a third grade pen pal.  We will learn how to correctly format and write a friendly letter to that person.  Then, after each child receives a letter, we will learn how to write a thank you letter in return.  We are hoping that this real world application will inspire a new generation of letter writing! :)

Spelling- Students will once again bring home spelling words on Mondays.  They will work to complete 8 points off the spelling menu by Thursday and we will test on Fridays.

Social Studies

Geography We will start our unit on land forms   In third grade we work to learn land form vocabulary.  Then, we will find when on our EARTH different land forms or bodies of water may be found.  Finally, we want students to think about how life might be based on what type of land form or body of water we live near.  

LA and SS update for the week of October 1-5

Reading
In Reading this week we will be look at genre and theme.  We will review some of the books we have shared aloud to determine what text evidence can help us determine a book's theme.  Students will then read fables in partners and independently to find evidence and determine theme.  We will use this same text evidence strategy to determine the genre of a book.  Students should be able to notice and name features of various genres (Mystery, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Autobiography, Biography, Informational, Traditional and Poetry).  Students will go on a genre hunt with a partner to search out books of various types. 

WRITING
As we continue to work in the genre of personal narrative, we will continue to consume examples (text and student work).  We will also look this week at critiquing personal narratives.  What things make a personal narrative EXCELLENT or not so great.  We will work as a class to create a criteria chart of the things we think EXCELLENT narratives need.

SPELLING

Please remember that they are responsible for completing 8 points and turning in their homework on Thursday mornings.  

SOCIAL STUDIES

Each class has three leadership council candidates that were nominated/chosen by classmates.  These candidates will work over the weekend to complete an application form and write a speech.  We will listen to their speeches and vote using a secret ballot!  We have talked at length about how we will only have ONE representative this school year.  This is a hard but real life lesson for many third graders to learn.  In our class discussions, we have talked about other ways third graders can serve as leaders even if he or she isn't the leadership council representative this school year.  Please continue this discussion at home.  If your child is looking for ways to volunteer or lead our community I don't want to squash anyone's drive and excitement!  We've even talked about what great leaders we can be for our reading buddies each Friday, and even for the bigger kids at our school as we conduct ourselves in the hallway and in the cafeteria.

In class, we will begin talking about how the United States government is set up.  Be ready... this week we will talk about how we have a local, state and federal government.  In the weeks to come you can look forward to talking with your kids about the three branches of government, elections, and leaders at each level of our government.

LA and SS for the week of 1/17/12

LANGUAGE ARTS
Spelling
We WILL have spelling words this week. The 10 points of spelling homework will be due on FRIDAY rather than Thursday to help give kids and families enough time to manage homework.

Reading
We are continuing to look at QAR (Question/Answer Relationships). Students will work to identify the types of questions they find and provide reasoning for their thoughts.
Your kids have been READING READING READING all about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. They started a menu last week and will finish that learning by this Friday. I'm excited to see their thoughts and inspirations. You can look for this to come home for your viewing pleasure 1/24/12.

Writing
Last week students completed a FREE WRITE. They were able to choose their own topic to write about and then let me read. We are coming a long way as writers, but still have some items that need attention.
As a class, we will start reading and critiquing book reviews. Our hope is to learn enough from what we consume (read) to produce some of our own!
Don't forget to check out the class blog, THIRD GRADE THOUGHTS. They will update this every Wednesday for your reading pleasure.

SOCIAL STUDIES
We will continue to learn about landforms.  This week we will start thinking of various ways to describe landforms or bodies of water and think about where they can be found.  We will then take this information and create LANDFORM POETRY!

Spelling Homework

This week will be your child's first adventure in Spelling homework.
Each child received a list of spelling words today and a Spelling  Homework Menu.  They should practice spelling and sorting the words each night using the activities found in the menu.  We wrote the words in the correct sort inside their spelling spirals for them to have as a reference tool all week.
I will collect spelling homework on Thursday mornings.  Thursday night your child's only spelling homework is to prepare for the spelling test on Friday.
During the spelling test on Friday, students will be asked to spell and sort the words correctly.
This process will become routine and familiar with time.  Take deep breaths, and feel free to email me with any questions.  REMEMBER, this is our first week... so we will GO SLOW! :) ~Mrs. Ford