September 29, 2013

It's hard to believe we will enter October this week! We have a busy week ahead. Students will get their first Starlab experience and I'm sure they will have lots to share. Have a great week!

This week....

Reading
Students will continue the Readerly  Life unit-getting to know themselves as readers. We are still working on finding "just right" books. Students have been using post its while reading silently and used these post its to help write a weekly reading reflection. We will do this each week. We will finish our first read aloud and will start our second. We started with realistic fiction and our next book will be fantasy. September reading calendars are due on Tuesday, October 1st. Students will get the October reading calendar and should continue the process.

Writing
We will be drafting personal narratives. Students will write a draft, revise and edit. Each student was assigned a writing partner for the unit and they will be working together on revising/peer editing. I will be meeting with each student individually for a writing a conference.

Math
We finished our first unit on Numeration. We will review Monday and will have a Unit 1 test Tuesday. A review sheet to practice will come home Monday night. Students will also clean out folders and bring home all papers from unit 1 to make room for unit 2!

Spelling
Students will get lists and homework on Monday. A sheet with directions for the weekly homework will also be coming home on Monday. Homework is due on Friday and they will have a spelling test on Friday.

Science
We will be going to Starlab at the end of the week! We will be looking a shapes and stars in the sky as an introduction to the constellations.

Social Studies
We will continue the geography unit.

Homework:
Math-Monday: Review Sheet; Tuesday-None; Wednesday-reteach 2-1; Thursday-reteach 2-2

Reading-September calendar due on Tuesday; read 20 minutes each night and record

Spelling-Look, Say. Cover, Name, Write Check sheet done each night, practice test on Thursday, test   on Friday

September 22, 2013

Thanks to everyone who came to Open House last week. It was great to meet so many parents. Also, thank you for filling out the Parent Information sheets. These are very helpful in giving me some added information on your child. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and enjoyed this beautiful fall weather!

This week...

Reading
Students will continue to learn about themselves as readers. We will continue to talk about genre and choosing just right books. We are still working to sustain at least 20 minutes of silent reading during the school day. Many children are doing great with this and could definitely even go longer. They should continue to read 20 minutes each night and record this on the September calendar.

Writing
Students are continuing to practice writing about memories in their writer's notebook. Toward the end of the week, students will start to zero in on one idea for their personal narrative, which will be our first published writing piece.

Spelling
Students will get a spelling list this week. We will take a pretest Monday and lists will be made from the words missed on the pretest, priority words missed and from a master list of words using the same skill as the pretest. Spelling tests are on Fridays. This week, we will practice the spelling homework program in school to practice. Next week, this will be done for homework. A sheet of directions for the spelling homework will come home next Monday.

Math
We will be continuing Unit 1, Numeration. The focus will  be on reading and writing larger numbers (up to hundred thousands), number lines and comparing and ordering numbers. **We will be having a Unit 1 test next Tuesday with a review on Monday.

Homework
Monday-Thursday: Read 20 minutes and record on calendar, one sheet of math each night

September 16, 2013

Welcome to the second week of third grade! We had a great week getting to know each other and getting used to the classroom routines. This week, we will begin getting into more curriculum. I am looking forward to meeting everyone at Open House! Have a great week!

Reading
Students will continue to talk about themselves as readers. We will discuss how and why we choose books. Each student has chosen an independent reading book in the classroom and will continue reading that this week. Students should continue recording their reading on the September calendar. Our current read-aloud book is called Justin Case, School, Drool and Other Daily Disasters by Rachel Vail. It is really funny and we are enjoying it a lot!

Writing
This week, we will continue to talk about writer's notebooks. We will create memory maps for ideas for our writer's notebook entry. This will lead us into our first writing unit, personal narrative. We will also be decorating the covers, so please make sure your child bring in supplies!

Math
We are working on the first unit called Numeration. The focus is on base ten numbers and place value.
Students will begin getting math homework on Monday.

Social Studies
We will begin a unit on geography, focusing on map skills this week.

Homework:
Monday-Thursday: Read 20 minutes and record on calendar; one math sheet per night

September 9, 2013

Welcome to the 2013-2014 school year! I am really happy to be back teaching 3rd grade at Slingerlands after spending a year at home with my children. This site will have important dates, weekly updates, photos and links throughout the school year. Have a great first week!

Homework:
Monday-
Bring planner money $3.05
Bring a book if you didn't pick one from my library
Tuesday-Read 20 minutes and record on the September calendar
Wednesday-Read 20 minutes and record on the September calendar
Thursday-Read 20 minutes and record; bring items to decorate writer's notebook (See note in folder)
Friday-Don't forget items for notebook. Have a great weekend!