May 1-5

"The world's favorite season is the spring. 
All things seem possible in May."
-  Edwin Way Teale

I loved seeing my wonderful students this morning after being away from them for a whole week.  We modeled equal sharing situations with $10 and $1 bills.  Students enjoyed drawing pictures to solve these problems.  We will finish Unit 8 in math this week, but will wait until next week for the assessment due to the state testing.  Students will not have homework this week.  We will be back to a regular schedule next Monday.

Miles in May began today.  Students will have the opportunity to walk or run laps on the playground during recess time in an effort to address Fitness Month.  We will compete with the other third grade classes to see who can acquire the most laps throughout the month.  Please encourage your child to run or walk a few laps each day.  

We will travel to Lego Land on Friday morning.  I am so excited for our field trip.  Please help your child to prepare for this experience with a good night's sleep, "brown bag" lunch (unless the cafeteria is making him or her one) and an on time arrival to school. We will be departing right after announcements.  

Have a fabulous week!  :)

April 17-21

"A small green frog
On a big brown log;
A black and yellow bee
In a little green tree;
A red and yellow snake
By a blue-green lake,
All sat and listened
To red bird sing,
"Wake up, everybody,
It's spring! It's spring!" 

We began our day with Smarter Balanced Testing.  Students have been doing an excellent job on the assessment and I'm very proud of them. Testing will continue through this week and the week following vacation as well.  We will not have any homework due to the testing schedule.  

This week, students will pick their art work and begin the writing component for our upcoming Integrated Arts Night.  Students will write poems, stories or reflections that relate to their chosen piece. Integrated Arts Night is a special event that occurs each spring.  Families are invited to LSS on that night to participate in fun, community activities.  More information will be forthcoming. 

Scholastic book orders are due on Thursday.  Our classroom code is HB244.  

Have a lovely week and a fantastic April vacation!  :)

April 3-7

"And Spring arose on the garden fair,
Like the Spirit of Love felt everywhere;
And each flower and herb on Earth's dark breast
rose from the dreams of its wintry rest."

We finished Unit 7 in math this morning.  Students did an excellent job of naming fractions of sets of objects.  We even used our classmates as examples for this lesson.  Students will have a Home Link for their last assignment in this unit tonight.  Tomorrow we will study and review for the test.  Students will have a Unit 7 Review packet for homework on Tuesday night.  The test will be given on Wednesday.  Homework for that night is a challenge activity.  We will begin Unit 8 on Thursday. Home Link 8.1 will go home for homework.  ***Family Letters for this new unit will go home this afternoon.  Please review them for information on the strategies and algorithms I will be teaching to the class.  Answers to homework can be found in there as well.  

Our spelling rule this week involves words with the /ûr/ sound.  Students will have a spelling assignment each night for homework.  

We will continue to research and prepare for our upcoming Wax Museum.  Students are very excited about this great project and look forward to sharing their historical figures with you.  

Scholastic book orders will go home this week.  Our classroom code is HB244.  Paper order forms will be due back by April 20th.  

Have a wonderful week!  :)

March 27-31

"A light exists in Spring
Not present in the year
at any other period
When March is scarcely here."
-  Emily Dickinson 

We began our week with a fraction lesson that involved writing a rule for ordering similar sets of fractions.  Other lessons this week include partitioning distances to locate fractions on a number line, justifying fraction comparisons, and solving fraction number stories. Students will have a Home Link each night to complete.

Our spelling rule this week includes words with the /oo/ or /yoo/ sounds. Students will have a spelling assignment each night for homework.  

We will continue with our Black American Unit this week.  Students have been researching their historical figures and look forward to sharing their knowledge with parents at the Wax Museum.  

Conference signups went home last week.  Please respond using Signup Genius or through email/phone call/note.  I look forward to speaking with parents soon.  

Have a wonderful week!  :)

March 20-24

"Today is the day when bold kites fly,
When cumulus clouds roar across the sky.
When robins return, when children cheer,
When light rain beckons spring to appear.

Today is the day when daffodils bloom,
Which children pick to fill the room,
Today is the day when grasses green,
When leaves burst forth for spring to be seen."
-  Robert McCracken, Spring 

We had a fabulous math lesson today.  Students enjoyed partitioning fractions strips to use for naming and comparing fractions.  They made posters to bring home and share with their families. Other lessons this week include representing fractions on number lines, and identifying fractions greater than, less than and equal to ONE on a number line. Students will have a Home Link each night for homework.

Our spelling rule this week involves a review of Unit 4 words. Students will have a one sided assignment Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights for homework. Please help your child study for his or her test on Friday.

Have a fantastic week!  :)

March 13-16

"All Nature seems at work.  Slugs leave their lair
The bees are stirring, birds are on the wing,
And Winter slumbering in the open air,
Wears on his smiling face a dream of spring."
-   Samuel Taylor Coleridge

We began Unit 7 in math today.  Students enjoyed estimating and measuring liquid volumes.  Students will identify equal shares and find equivalent fractions in class tomorrow.  They will also solve number stories involving time, mass, and length later this week. On Thursday we will partition fraction strips and use them to name and compare fractions.  Students will have a Home Link on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings.  Thursday's homework will be done in class.  :)

Our spelling rule this week involves suffix endings -ed and -ing. Students will have an assignment on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings. The test will be given on Thursday as there will not be school for students on Friday.  

We will begin our Black American Unit this week.  I look forward to the wonderful literature and activities that are involved in this unit.  

Scholastic book orders are due on the 16th.  Our classroom code is HB244.  

Have a fantastic week!  :)

March 6-10

"The March wind roars
Like a lion in the sky,
And makes us shiver
As he passes by. 
When winds are soft,
And the days are warm and clear,
Just like a gentle lamb,
Then spring is here."
-  Author Unknown

Welcome back to school!  I hope everyone had a fabulous and restful vacation.  We began our week with a Dress Rehearsal for tonight's Music in our Schools concert.  The kids look and sound fabulous!  I am looking forward to seeing all of your families tonight.  :)

We will finish Unit 6 in math this week.  The Review will be done in class on Wednesday and the test will be given the following day. Students will have a Home Link tonight and Tuesday with a Review packet on Wednesday to study for their test.  The Unit 7 Family Letter will go home this week.  Please remember to refer to it for help with concepts, homework and strategies.  

Our spelling rule this week involves words with the /õõ/ sound. Students will have a spelling assignment on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights.  Please help your child study for his or her test on Thursday.  

Scholastic book orders are due on March 16th.  Our classroom code is HB244. 

Have a wonderful week!  :)