December 18-22

“December, being the last month of the year, cannot help but make us think of what is to come.” 

We had a very special morning as administration treated the entire third grade to the movie "Snow Buddies." This was just the beginning of many fun activities planned for this week. We will have our class auction and our holiday party as well. 

No spelling this week! We will start fresh when we return to school in January.

We will have limited math assignments as well. Please expect math homework on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings. Our lessons this week relate to measurement, polygons, perimeter and area. 

Have a wonderful week and a fantastic holiday! See you in January! :)

December 11-15

“I heard a bird sing in the dark of December. A magical thing. And sweet to remember. We are nearer to Spring than we were in September. I heard a bird sing in the dark of December.” 
― Oliver Herford

We were so lucky to begin our week with the 5th grade band and chorus concert! They all did an incredible job! Then the PEA Reading Buddies came for their weekly visit. Students read The Magic School Bus Space Explorers with their buddies. A great time was had by all!

Ms. Karen led the class in a Cosmic Kids yoga activity. The whole class enjoyed the Stars Wars activity. They were all engaged while stretching and strengthening their bodies.

Our math lessons this week include measuring to the nearest half inch and centimeter, generating measurement data and representing the data on a line plot. We will also measure distances around objects to the nearest half inch and compare masses. Finally we will review characteristics of polygons. Students will have a Home Link each night for homework.

Our spelling rule involves Unexpected Consonant Spellings. Students will have four spelling assignments due before the test on Friday, the 15th.

Have a fantastic week! :)

December 4-8

"December's wintery breath is already clouding the pond, frosting the pane, obscuring summer's memory...” John Geddes

We had a lovely Monday morning together. Students were introduced to a new (in class) reading project that focuses on Nonfiction Text Features. We also finished comprehension answers for our What Do Illustrators Do? story. Students will take the Vocabulary and Comprehension test for this story tomorrow. 

Students enjoyed Brain Gym with Ms. Karen as well. They worked on Starfish stretches, Sun Salutations, Finger Tapping and Planks. They also organized their brains by making pictures using the clover leaf pattern. 

Students took the Spelling Test this morning. They'll take the next Pretest on Wednesday, our Early Release day. Our next rule features Unexpected Consonant Spellings. Students will have homework on Wednesday and Thursday evenings. They'll have two more assignments due before next Wednesday's test (the 13th). 

Our math lessons this week ask students to represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division, develop the subtracting-a-group strategy, and use all four operations to generate equivalent names for numbers. We will finish Unit 3 on Wednesday so we will review for the test the next day. The Unit 3 assessment will be given on Friday.

The last Scholastic book order for the year will go home today. Please consider buying books for holiday gifts for your child. I can hold the books in the classroom for parents to pick up at their convenience if that works best for a surprise gift. Our classroom code is HB244. 

Have a fantastic week! :)

November 27-December 1

"I like spring, but it is too young. I like summer, but it is too proud. So I like best of all autumn, because its tone is mellower, its colours are richer, and it is tinged with a little sorrow. Its golden richness speaks not of the innocence of spring, nor the power of summer, but of the mellowness and kindly wisdom of approaching age. It knows the limitations of life and its content." -  Lin Yutang

We began our week with new vocabulary, spelling words, phonics and Anchor Text. Our new story is an informational text titled What Do Illustrators Do? Students made predictions after taking a picture walk through the story. We all enjoyed Brain Gym this morning as well. 

Our math lessons this week will explore different ways to measure area, partition rectangles and represent data on a scaled bar graph. Ms. Devyn, our intern from SST, will teach tomorrow's lesson on creating scaled picture graphs. Other lessons this week include identifying square numbers and understanding the turn-around rule for multiplication. Students will have a Home Link each night for homework.

Our spelling rule this week features Three-Letter Clusters. Students will have a spelling menu choice each night for homework. Our spelling test will take place on Friday afternoon.

We are so excited to see "Wonder" on Friday morning. Thank you to the parents who offered to be chaperones. Unfortunately, due to space constraints, we are only allowed two parents per classroom. I will contact you today if you volunteered to chaperone. 

Have a fantastic week! :)

November 20th and 21st

T   hanks for time to be together, turkey, talk, and tangy weather.
H  for harvest stored away, home, and hearth, and holiday.
A  for autumn's frosty art, and abundance in the heart.
N  for neighbors, and November, nice things, new things to remember.
K  for kitchen, kettles' croon, kith and kin expected soon.
S  for sizzles, sights, and sounds, and something special that about.
    That spells THANKS for joy in living and a jolly good    Thanksgiving.                  
-   Aileen Fisher, All in a Word

Have a fantastic holiday with family and friends! Happy Thanksgiving! :)

November 13-17

"November comes
And November goes,
With the last red berries
And the first white snows.

With night coming early,
And dawn coming late,
And ice in the bucket
And frost by the gate.

The fires burn
And the kettles sing,
And earth sinks to rest
Until next spring."

We began our week with a new essential question, vocabulary and spelling pretest. Our Anchor Text for the week is a narrative non fiction titled Bat Loves the Night. Students are very excited about it. We also enjoyed Brain Gym this morning and using the racquet balls to practice a balance/auditory/visual exercise. 

Our math lessons this week include using partial sums addition to add 2- and 3-digit numbers, understanding column addition, reviewing the counting up method of subtraction and trying expand and trade subtraction. Students will have a Home Link each night for homework. 

Our spelling rule involves both short and long vowels this week. Students will have a spelling menu activity each night.

We will begin our Solar System Unit this week. I look forward to studying the moon's phases, planets and Earth's rotation with the class.

Have a wonderful week! :)

October 31-November 3rd

"There is no season when such pleasant and sunny spots may be lighted on, and produce so pleasant an effect on the feelings, as now in October." Nathaniel Hawthorne

We had a fabulous Halloween/Autumn celebration this afternoon. Thank you very much to the parents who planned and organized this special event. I'm grateful for all of your help. 

The math test has been postponed until Thursday due to the storm day and our Halloween party. We will continue to review for the test tomorrow. Both review packets will go home tomorrow afternoon so students can study them. We will begin Unit 3 on Monday. No homework tonight due to Trick or Treat!

Students will continue to study the Long i pattern this week. Our spelling test will take place on Friday. Students have a spelling assignment due each day. 

Scholastic book orders are due on November 14th. Our classroom code for ordering online is HB244. 

Have a safe and fun Halloween! :)