In Math and Science Week of January 9-13th

Well parents we made it through the first three days back.  We all were a little sluggish and tired by Friday!  We are already getting back in the groove and hitting the ground running.

In Math this week we will start the wonderful world of fractions!!  The first half of the week we will work on parts of a whole (imagine a pizza or pie) .  We will be trying to verbalize 2/8 pieces have been eaten, 3/6 pieces are shaded, etc....  The latter part of the week we will be looking at parts of a set.  For example 4/6 squares are shaded so that means 2/6 squares are NOT shaded.  Fractions, for whatever reason, causes grief across every grade level.  My fear is that there is a lot that has been forgotten over the past year concerning fractions, so I am going to really start basic at first as a review, and slowly build a foundation.  We will be studying fractions the next 3-4 weeks.

This coming Friday will be our first multiplication Fast Fact test.  The students will be expected to complete 30 problems in 1.5 minutes.  Flash cards to study will be given on Monday to study at home with you.  Students can also practice online with some websites on our Helpful Websites tab in the blog.  Please study x0, x1, and x10.  Students will only be tested on these this Friday.  This first test will not be graded.

In Science the kids will be working on a Land form project in Power Point.  Each student was assigned a Land form this past Friday, and will begin their research starting this coming Monday in class.  The kids will be given 30-45 minutes in class a day to complete this project.  They will be given a research paper with all the requirements to guide them through their research.  This project will hopefully be completed by this Friday the 13th, so that the kids can share them with their classmates the following week.

Here are the requirements of the project:

1. Land form's formal definition
2. How the Land form is formed
3. How the Land form changes over time
4. 2 real world examples of their Land form with location and 2 interesting facts per example

All students will be using Mrs. Moore's website on Land forms to conduct their research.  Here is the link:

Land Form Research Websites

It should be a great week of learning :)  

Love, Mrs. S

Language Arts and Social Studies Update

Happy New Year! I hope you enjoyed your break as much as I did. Yesterday we took some time to catch up and share about our holiday break. From the third grader's perspective, it sounds like you all had a fun and safe time together. We will work the week and next on the following LA/SS topics. LANGUAGE ARTS READING We will begin earning a new way to think about questions we encounter during and after reading. This way of thinking or strategy is known as 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) WRITING We have finished our personal narratives and will begin to consume various types of book reviews. If you are an amazon shopper, you might read book reviews often. We will discuss what types of information help make a review helpful to those who read them. Please share with your child you ideas and options about the books you are reading. Let them know WHY you choose to read that book. Did a friend recommend the book? Is is on the top 10 best sellers list? Did you read a review in a magazine or newspaper that sparked your interest in the book? SPELLING There will not be spelling the week of January 2. Spelling lists will begin again next week, 1/9-1/13. Please remember that the 10 points of spelling homework are due on Thursday each week and tests are administered on Fridays. THANKS for your help with WORD WORK at home. SOCIAL STUDIES We have put economics to rest and are moving on to a new topic for this nine weeks. Social Studies and Science will compliment eachother over the next few weeks as we learn about various landforms and bodies of water. Here are our new vocabulary words for this study… Canyon, Peak, Channel, Peninsula, Coast, Plain, Coastal Plain, Plateau, Desert, River, Gulf, Riverbank, Hill, Valley, Island, Ocean, and Mountain. Understanding these concepts will help us later this 9 weeks as we talk about different types of maps and regions across America where these land forms can be found.

Welcome Back!!! Math and Science this week.....

Dear Parents,

Happy New Year!!!  I hope all of your holiday break was filled with family, fun, and laughter.  It is good to be back :)  This crazy short week will be a great transition to get back into the school groove.

In math this week we will be counting money. We will use coins and bills to count and identify money. Students are expected to identify coins and their value and count dollar amounts. Students also need to use the correct symbols to label amounts. Counting coins is a concept that was introduced in 1st grade, reviewed in 2nd grade, and hopefully mastered by 3rd grade. It can be a difficult concept for students to master so please practice counting at home. Just take out a coin purse, grab a handful of coins and have the kids count! The best way to master the concept is to practice, practice, practice!

In science we will be looking at landforms. Landforms are natural formations found on Earth. We will study many examples including mountains, valleys, rivers, lakes, basins, prairies, oceans and many more! Here is a link with some other examples: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/geography/landforms/glossary.shtml

There will be no Fast Facts test this week, but that doesn't mean you can't start practicing.  We will start with multiplication this month.  Please practice the x 0, x1, and x10.  All students will have to make a 100, before they can move on to the next level on their multiplication test.  So practice, practice, practice.  Good ol' flashcards are NOT overrated!

Once again, welcome back.  I look forward to the 2ND half of the school year :)

Mrs. S

Math and Science Week of Dec 12-16th

Parents,

Well here we are, down to the last 4 1/2 days!  I know it is going to just fly by, but before we leave for Winter Break we must get a few more things in.

In Math this week, we will be studying measuring again.  Instead of using the United States Customary System with inches, feet, yards, and miles, we will now be measuring in The Metric System.  The students will become familiarized with words like millimeter, centimeter, meter, and kilometer.  We will be measuring things all around the room using The Metric System and trying to apply it to our real world.  It is rather confusing for a third grader to switch back and forth between The Customary System and The Metric System.  Any real world applications that you can use from home would be awesome!  I remember being in Canada this past summer thinking, "I know it says 30 more Kilometers until Banff, but what does that mean?"  "How far is 30 Kilometers, and how fast are we really going?!!!"
We will complete our Metric Unit study on Thursday with a Metric Quiz.

In Science this week, we will continue our study of Fast changes on the earth's surface.  With last week being so incredibly busy, we only studied Hurricanes and Tornadoes in great depth.  This week I hope to get into Landslides, Volcanoes, and Earthquakes.  We will close our study of fast land changes and forces that shape the land on Thursday.

On Friday will be the Sing-a-Long in the morning and our Holiday Party at 11:15.  Friday will be an early dismissal at noon as well.  I hope every single one of you have a wonderful break and holiday with your beautiful children.  It has been an easier transition to 3rd grade this year than I originally anticipated and I have you to thank for that.  Thank you for all your help and support.  :-)

Love,
Mrs. S

I must add that after studying multiplication and division for the last month or so, I am really proud of the effort and the understanding that these kids put forth into learning it.

Holiday Reports and Shoe In Economics

Language Arts and Social Studies Updates!

LANGUAGE ARTS
Thank you for helping your child brainstorm a winter family tradition this last week.  


On Monday, students will take their prewrite and turn it into a paragraph or two to inform and entertain classmates about their holiday tradition.  I will send the paragraph home on Monday.  Students will NOT have spelling homework next week.  Instead, they should spend Monday and Tuesday nights preparing their oral presentations.  I have attached the rubric I will use to assess their presentation for your reference at home. 


Due to the number of students presenting, and limited class time, students have signed up to either present on Wednesday, December 14 or Thursday, December 15.
Ford's Class Holiday Report Sign Up 2011
Skrivanek's Class Holiday Report Sign Up 2011


Reports are a fun time for us to learn more about one another and give kids a chance to shine and be the "expert" in our class.  I will record the presentations on the FLIP video camera.  If you would like a copy of your child's presentation, please send a labeled memory stick with your child on the day of his or her presentation.  I will do my best to get you the memory stick and presentation by Friday, December 16. 


SOCIAL STUDIES
We enjoyed ECON and ME videos learn more about economic concepts and vocabulary.  See if you third grader and do part of the GONNA TELL YOU ABOUT ECON rap.  This week, students will be put into teams and will create a SHOE business.  They will design a shoe and then produce the shoe in an assembly line.  Teams will then create an advertisement in hopes to get consumers interested in their product.  This hands-on activity will be our culminating project for economics!  

Week of December 5th-December 9th

Parents,

The time is just flying by, and we are down to the last two weeks of the first half of the year!  Can you believe it?  This week coming up we will have a visit in the classroom from our counselor, Mrs. Luberger.   The kids will also be taking a Science Benchmark test on Wacky Wednesday.

Last week we introduced division to the kids and I thought it went really well.  The kids are super excited to be learning division and are motivated to understand it.  I think it makes them feels like big kids :)  This week we will tackle Multiplication and Division Fact Families to see the relationship between the two.  For instance,               if 4 X 6 = 24, then 6 x 4 = 24, then 24 / 4 = 6, and 24 / 6 = 4.  The key to writing these correctly is to remind the kids that when they are writing the multiplication equations, the smaller numbers go first.  When they are writing the division equation, the larger number is always written first.  Fact families is usually a concept that students catch on to rather quickly.

In Science last week, we dug into dirt and learned about Weather, Erosion, Soil, and decomposing.  We had a fun time on Friday playing "The Rotten Game," and trying to predict how long it takes certain materials to decompose.  This week will start a weather/ natural disaster unit.  We will learn about Hurricanes, Tornadoes, Earthquakes, Landslides, and Volcanoes.  We will watch some really cool "storm chaser" footage that the kids are sure to enjoy.  We will try to link this learning back to last weeks concepts over weathering and erosion, and make the connection that all these things change the surface of our earth.

I'm expecting it to be a great week!  Thanks for all you do.

Love, Mrs. S

Week of November 28th - December 2nd

Parents,


I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving break and are well rested for the next three crazy weeks!  They will be fast and furious.  


This week we will be introducing division in third grade.  Our study of division will begin basic, as we plan to use cubes and pictures to represent the process of dividing a larger group of things into smaller equal groups.   Students will practice “acting out” the process of division.  Through a mathematical story, The Doorbell Rang, students will divide Grandma’s 12 cookies equally among 12, 6, 4, and 3 friends.   


Fast Fact Friday will be a grade this week.  This quiz will be a combination of 10 addition facts and 10 subtraction facts.  Students should continue studying facts each night.  The expectation is that all of these facts are memorized by December.   Starting January, students will begin studying multiplication facts.




In Science this week, we will be learning about  weathering (the breaking apart of rock into small pieces) and watching a video called “Weathering and Erosion.”  The students will look at all different pictures and examples of weathering and erosion on a flipchart and discover some of the most amazing landscapes that erosion and weathering create.  In their journal, students will define weathering and erosion (the carrying away of weathered rock)  and list the many agents of weathering: wind, water, temperature, plants, animals, chemicals, man. The student bring in a rock no bigger than a quarter for Science HW this week.

A special thank you for all you parents reading this and keeping up with the daily happenings of the classroom.  It takes a village!