Hi Parents,
This week, we are moving right along and are half way through the first quarter already! Check out below to see what we've been doing to learn. As far as developing our classroom community and practicing becoming responsible third graders, some of us have had some growing pains this week! Remember, these are learning opportunities and even though it may be hard, the students are acquiring skills that will help them all through life. We are focusing on being to peers even when a teacher is not looking, staying focused and attentive when we are in a mini-lesson, and making sure to be responsible for our independent working time. If you are not yet on Class Dojo, this will help you discuss your child's progress with social skills. Third grade can be a transition for some, but the behavior expectations needs to be understood so we can accomplish all we can academically. If you haven't yet signed up for Class Dojo, please do so! This will allow you to see exactly how your child is doing.
Phonics/Spelling: We focused on irregular singular and plural nouns. We learned that words that end in -f or -fe change to -ves in the plural form. We learned that some words have a vowel change from singular to plural form, such as foot/feet, woman/women, and mouse/mice. We also learned that for some words, the singular and plural form are the same and we must use context to determine which it is.
Writing: We focused on how authors often use the technique of "showing" not "telling" to make their writing interesting. An example from one of our mentor authors, Karen Hesse, is when she talked about how hot the day was and she wrote, "...heat wavers off the tar patches in the broiling alleyway." We practiced turning "telling" sentences into "showing sentences" and then incorporating this into our own narratives. We also looked at the third and fourth grade writing rubric for narratives and talked about expectations, such as using transitions to show that a story is written in order (after a little while, all of a sudden, etc.)
Reading: We finished our first chapter book, Stone Fox. We talked about character traits to describe the characters and using text evidence to support our opinions. We also completed several "close readings" of small passages from the book; learning how to figure out challenging vocabulary. We then looked at how this close reading technique helps us to deeply understand a story. We began our book clubs this week and read several chapters, then discussed the characters and character traits.
Math: We continued our unit on addition and subtraction strategies to solve problems through 1000. We focused on using expanded form and using an open number line. We also began working through multi-step word problems and using our ACE strategy to remember important steps (Analyze, Compute, Explain). We practiced our mental math strategies during number talks each day, and we worked in small group to think through some challenging tasks. Several groups visited the Innovation Lab and worked with Mr. Brazile on math logic/reasoning.
Science: We continued our study of Rocks and Minerals, focusing on the three main types of rocks; Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic. We studied the rock cycle and learned how each type of rock is formed and how the rocks can change. We began our end of unit posters to show our knowledge and a small group visited the Innovation Lab to work on adding special components to teach the rest of the class about types of rocks.
Class News and Announcements...
Today, you will be receiving a class directory. A HUGE thank you goes to Mrs. Bazarsky for making these adorable books for us!!!!
PTA fundraising envelopes and letters came home this week. Please support Kemp through your donations!
Iowa and CoGat testing letters also came home this week. We'll be testing later in September.
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