Dear Parent(s),
As mentioned in our weekly email, our Special Lunch is coming up next week! Please see the invitation and RSVP request below. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1aoKxLxgUMD8yoU5EgU9y21qV1ymlEFosD-GuRrICsUc/viewform Simply click the link above to respond to our lunch invitation. This is a safe link - It is a Google Document Form that will deliver information to me as a spreadsheet once you enter your responses, rather than sending home paper slips to everyone that may be lost or misplaced. (I will send home papers on Monday to those that I have not heard from.) I hope everyone can make it! I look forward to seeing you all!
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*Students from my homeroom received a hard copy today. Ms. Mitchell passed out her forms last Thursday. Attached you will find the invitation for our Third Grade Field Trip. We will be visiting an Indian reservation in Gray Court on March 28th. Permission slips and payment ($5) are due by March 14th. Please feel free to visit the website below to acquire more information about the reservation and activities. This will be a wonderful experience and will foster a true understanding of Native American culture. http://www.paialowereasterncherokeenationsc.com/page7/page7.html
I decided to make a “Key” for the Science study guide for those that may want to go ahead and begin studying early. Although on the study guide, they only have to name and order the life cycles of the bean plant, frog, and butterfly – they will be required to illustrate and label the life cycle on the test. (actually draw a picture) I also ran across a really helpful website that has links to life cycle illustrations from animals in each “category”. (Near the bottom of the page) http://www.kidzone.ws/animals/lifecycle.htm
Good morning! I have attached the newsletter, multiplication log, and DREAM homework sheet for the week. In Science, we will continue with our life science unit, focusing on life cycles of seed plants and various animals. We will complete a study guide together in class on Wednesday and test on Friday. Here are links to Brain Pop Jr. clips that we have used in class. http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/plantlifecycle/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/partsofaplant/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/animals/frogs/preview.weml http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/animals/butterflies/preview.weml In Math, we are focusing on graphing. We will focus mostly on pictographs and bar graphs. Students will complete an assessment in class on Friday. http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/data/pictographs/preview.weml http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/jams/math/data-analysis/pictograph.htm http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/data/tallychartsandbargraphs/ http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/jams/math/data-analysis/bar-graphs.htm We are also working on Math 4 Today week #21. Please be reminded that we began our MAP testing today in the Math Lab. Encourage your child to do their best and take their time. We also have our Social Studies program Friday at 9am in the activity center. Third grade will sing 4 songs that go along with our Social Studies curriculum. We hope that everyone can come support our students! Dojo reports and graded test papers will be sent home today. Please sign and return them tomorrow.
Mrs. O'Hare was here today from USC Upstate's Watershed Ecology program. Although we have not made it to our lessons on food chains in our life science unit, she gave us an excellent introduction to these new concepts. We learned all about food chains - producers, consumers, and decomposers. She also taught us a really cool army chant to remember the order. Please enjoy our food chain videos below. As you all know, we visit the computer lab twice a week for students to work in Study Island. Study Island is a web-based computer program that allows students to view lessons, answer questions, and play games on standards based topics. This program is designed to help prepare students for end of year standardized testing. It is my job to assign lessons to the students according to areas that need review or remediation, and also monitor the data from their performance in the lab. I recently viewed a report of their "overall performance" in Study Island, and their percentages were alarmingly lower than I expected. As I researched and studied the data further, I have come to the conclusion that students are not taking the time to go back into lessons that they do not do well in. If a student scores less than 70%, they should be going back to the lesson, reviewing the questions they missed, and then going back to retest and improve their percentage. In the coming weeks, we will be implementing some new procedures that will hopefully improve our percentages. I wanted you to be aware of the changes, and familiarize you with the new plan. To begin with, we will complete a "demo" lesson in class so that I can be certain that every student knows how to find their percentage and then view the items they missed in the lesson. I will teach them strategies to use, so that they can learn from their mistakes and improve their percentages when they attempt the topic again. Additionally, instead of having standing assignments that students can work through as they please, we will begin selecting 2-3 topics that will be updated each week. We will choose topics that we have recently covered in class, so that it is review rather than frustrating them with new concepts to master on their own. When the student goes to the lab, they will have the Study Island Log (attached) and will know that they should look for the assignment labeled for that week. The assignment topics will be listed at the top of their log. They have to answer at least 10 questions on each topic and score 70% or higher. If they answer the first 10 questions on topic #1 and they score below 70%, they will be required to go back into that topic, review the lessons and questions they missed, and then attempt at least 10 more questions to improve their percentage. Once they score above 70%, they should show the log to the lab administrator, she will sign it, and they can move to the next topic. Students who complete the entire assignment and score above 70% on all topics, will have the lab administrator sign their log and then they can proceed into the NWEA Learning Path. The NWEA learning path gives them practice on their level, according to their MAP scores, and does not figure into their percentages. At the end of class, I will collect their log, compare it with my report, and then send it home for your review with graded test papers each Monday. Students who finish the assignment with a 90% or higher will be rewarded each week. I am hopeful that holding them accountable and giving them responsibility for their scores (on paper), will motivate them to attempt more questions and improve their percentages. With all of that being said, next week we begin MAP testing during our lab times on Monday and Thursday; for the next 3 weeks. (During testing, students will not work in Study Island, so our new procedures will not begin until March.) This will be our last testing window for the year. You can review the scores from Fall and Winter on the blue card in the back of your student's agenda. Please encourage your student to take their time and do their very best. Also, please make every effort to have your child at school on these days. Although we do not want to pressure them to the point of becoming anxious, it is very important that they understand the significance of this test. I know they will do great and I can't wait for them to show me how much they have learned this year! Thanks for all of your support from home - please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!
Good morning! Please remember that 3rd grade Muffins for Moms has been rescheduled for this Wednesday in the lunch room beginning at 7am. (Pay at the door.) Reminder to mark your calendars…our special menu dates have been set! Burnette’s homeroom will be March 5th at 10:40 and Mitchell’s homeroom will be March 19th at 10:40. On these days, family members are invited to come join their student for a special lunch. Please do not send money for lunch in advance. The register will open at 10:40 for visitors to pay. Adult lunch is $3.40 and children are $1.60. We will send home RSVP forms closer to the date. In Science, we are beginning our new Life Science unit. We will be discussing life cycles of seed plants and animals. I have attached the PASS Coach that goes along with these lessons. The test on this information will not be until next week. I will let you know the specific date as soon as possible. Helpful links: http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/plantlifecycle/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/partsofaplant/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/animals/frogs/preview.weml http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/animals/butterflies/preview.weml We will also briefly discuss George Washington Carver. This goes right along with February being Black History Month and it also integrates with their Social Studies discussion of slavery and civil rights. If your child has been answering the SS Question of the Day on the news how, it will also help them answer one of the questions! http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/georgewashingtoncarver/ In Math, we are happy to say that we have covered ALL standards for the year. At this point, we will begin going back and re-teaching/reviewing topics that we have already covered. This will be excellent PASS review! This week, we are working on telling time and mass/liquid volume, which is all part of the Measurement standards. We will have a quiz on these concepts on Friday. The DREAM sheet from last week will be collected this Friday. I will not issue new DREAM sheets. If your child lost or misplaced theirs, please have them ask me for a new one. http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/time/timetotheminute/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/measurement/gramsandkilograms/ We are working on Math 4 Today – Week 20. The test will be on Friday. I have given students a new multiplication log. I have “X-ed” out the weekend block because of the snow days. These are due Friday. I am sending home graded test papers, stapled with their newsletter and other important documents from the office. There will be NO Dojo report this week since we were only here 1 day last week. Please contact me if you have any further questions or concerns!
Send me your snow pictures and I'll share them on here. Cole and Luke spent the day building an igloo. I'm so glad they were listening in class when we were doing our heat unit. They remembered that Eskimos build igloos to trap heat (insulator). Way to go, guys! Special "shout out" to Jaiden, Ryker, Jasmine, Thomas, and Logan for spending Snow Day time working in Study Island! I am extremely proud of you! Good morning! Mark your calendars…our special menu dates have been set! Burnette’s homeroom will be March 5th at 10:40 and Mitchell’s homeroom will be March 19th at 10:40. On these days, family members are invited to come join their student for a special lunch. Please do not send money for lunch in advance. The register will open at 10:40 for visitors to pay. Adult lunch is $3.40 and children are $1.60. We will send home RSVP forms closer to the date. In Science, we are beginning our new Life Science unit. We will be discussing life cycles of seed plants and animals. I have attached the PASS Coach that goes along with these lessons. We had initially planned to begin these lessons on Wednesday, however, I went ahead and did the first lesson today since we have the chance of bad weather. We are scheduled to attend Watershed tomorrow. I also went ahead and created a new lesson in Study Island on life cycles. In the event that we do have snow days and you experience cabin fever, please allow your children to go in and do the “Life Cycle Practice” lesson. Helpful links: http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/plantlifecycle/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/partsofaplant/ We will also briefly discuss George Washington Carver. This goes right along with February being Black History Month and it also integrates with their Social Studies discussion of slavery and civil rights. If your child has been answering the SS Question of the Day on the news show, it will also help them answer one of the questions! http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/plants/georgewashingtoncarver/ In Math, we are happy to say that we have covered ALL standards for the year. At this point, we will begin going back and re-teaching/reviewing topics that we have already covered. This will be excellent PASS review! This week, we are working on telling time and mass/liquid volume, which is all part of the Measurement standards. The DREAM sheet is reflective of these topics, and since we have already taught them – I will collect DREAM sheets on Friday. (Or whenever we return) http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/time/timetotheminute/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/measurement/gramsandkilograms/ Students were given their new Multiplication log on Friday. These are due this Friday. Please let me know if you need a new copy. Dojo reports, newsletters, and graded test papers are being sent home today. Please sign them and return them tomorrow. Let us know if you have any further questions. Ms. Mitchell will follow later today with her information. Have a great day!
We had an AWESOME Science lesson today! We read about sources of heat and made up motions to remember the 5 different sources: sun, burning, rubbing, electricity, and living things. We even had to use our dictionary and context clue skills that Ms. Mitchell taught us to decide what the word SOURCE means. (the point from which something comes – or in our case “where heat comes from”) After learning about the sources and then talking about how sources are different from conductors and insulators, we completed a lab where students rotated in groups around to 8 different items to observe. At each station, they had to decide if the item produced heat. If it did produce heat, they had to identify the source. If it did not produce heat, they had to tell me why. I have included some pictures from both classes…hope you enjoy! A few weeks ago when we were discussing changes in state of matter, we had an ice melting contest. Students had to develop ways to melt their ice the fastest. Several groups wanted to use the lamp in our room. Once they went to the lamp, they realized that it wasn’t producing much heat at all…especially not enough to help melt their ice. The bulb in the lamp was a CFL bulb, so today I brought in a regular light bulb to put in my lamp. They were quick to notice the major difference in the amount of heat produced by the bulb I brought in today! We talked about how the CFL was designed to use less energy, thus producing less heat. I am so proud of their findings today. I truly believe that experiences like these are when the most meaningful learning takes place!
Reminder: Test on Matter & Heat is THIS Friday! Good morning! I have attached the newsletter, homework calendar, and DREAM
homework sheet for this week. Please notice that the DREAM sheet is the same as last week, since we were unable to complete it and the lessons that go along with it because of the snow days. I have also attached a multiplication log, which is due Friday. Dojo reports and graded test papers will be sent home today. Please sign them and return them tomorrow. I am going to copy/paste my message from Friday with our plans for the week – and make some revisions of dates. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns! Ms. Mitchell will follow later today with her information and documents. *Math & Science Night is rescheduled for February 3rd 6-7pm in the Activity Center. In Science, we will do Lesson 25 – Conducting Heat on Tuesday. (We do not have Science on Monday’s because we do “Monday Math” – PASS Practice.) We will do Lesson 26 – Sources of Heat on Wednesday; along with the lab where students identify different items as a SOURCE or an INSULATOR (classwork grade). On Thursday, we will complete the Matter Study Guide, and then test on Friday (February 7th). I have attached both lessons, the study sheet that was sent home on Friday (please disregard the date on the digital version), and the study guide we will do in class on Thursday. Please be reminded that I have created an extra credit assignment in Study Island that would also be an excellent review. Helpful Links: http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/matter/solidsliquidsandgases/ http://archive.fossweb.com/modulesK-2/SolidsandLiquids/index.html http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/matter/changingstatesofmatter/ http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/jams/science/energy-light-sound/heat.htm . In Math, we will continue working on Math 4 Today #19. (We have only completed day 1 at this point.) We will have Assessment #19 on Friday (February 7th). We will complete Geometry Lesson 18 (Slides, Flips, and Turns) today, and we will continue that lesson on Wednesday to discuss their “synonyms”: reflection, rotation, and translation. On Wednesday we will review perpendicular/parallel lines, 2D figures, and transformations with a quiz and then discuss combining and dividing shapes. On Thursday, we will go back and review through our entire geometry unit (Lessons 14-19) for a unit test on Friday. This test will cover points, lines, segments, rays, angles, triangles, parallel, perpendicular, 2D figures, diameter, radius, circumference, slides, flips, turns, and combining/dividing shapes. The PASS Coach (in their yellow folder & attached) can be used to study by. The “Lesson Practice” pages at the end of each lesson are excellent review! Since we only completed one night of homework last week and we were unable to do the lessons that go along with it, I did not take up homework last Friday (1/31). Students received a new copy of the homework sheet today for this week’s homework. Helpful Links: http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/jams/math/geometry/types-of-lines.htm http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/geometry/planeshapes/ http://www.brainpopjr.com/math/geometry/slidesturnsandflips/ http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/jams/math/geometry/transformations.htm Everyone received a new multiplication log on Friday, and it will be collected as usual on Friday. |
My dream is to create a 21st Century classroom that encourages collaboration, integrates technology, and promotes thinking deeply.
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