October 8, 2009
Dear 3B Families,
What a beautiful Autumn we’re
having! Our four-day week just flew by. We finished our class novel
In science this week, our students finished their hydroponic posters and continued to learn the names and
functions for the different structures of our plants (dormant seed, embryo,
cotyledon, roots, stem, seedling, leaves etc).
Students were also introduced to our class pet for this section of our
FOSS Kit – 15 crayfish! Students learned
the safe way to pick up the crayfish, and have really enjoyed getting
acquainted with them!
In social studies, students were able to create their own
compass roses using their knowledge of less
than right angles and their “angle maker” tools. Look for their compass roses in the Friday
Folder. They may wish to hang these in
their bedrooms – just be sure they know where north is!
We continued working in our math textbook to study
geometry. Our focus in geometry has been
2-D figures. We have been learning to
recognize and form lines, line segments, rays and angles, and to name congruent
and similar figures. We will have a
“Checkpoint” next week to see how the kids are coming along with these
concepts. Yesterday we created tangrams (shapes using seven standard geometric
pieces). This fun project incorporated
math, art, and writing. Look for these
to come home soon. We also continued to
practice our math fact binders and will soon feel comfortable enough to send
them for home use.
Reminders:
Friday, October 9th – Archdiocesan in-service, no school.
Monday, October 12th–
Faculty in-service, students out at noon.
Monday, October 12th – Book orders due (make one check to
Scholastic Books, no cash)
Wednesday, October 14th –
3rd grade attends morning Mass (dress uniform, please)
Have a wonderful weekend!
Christina and Christine
October 2, 2009
Dear 3B
Families,
Happy October! We’ve
had a busy week in 3B! We completed out
first religion unit with a chapter focusing on recognizing God and His presence
in our families and our home lives. Students
learned that our families are like domestic
Churches. Our families reinforce the
Church’s teachings about treating one another with respect and love. Students spent time reflecting on these ideas
while decorating a picture of a present to represent how each of us is a “gift”
from God. Students also created smaller
presents to show the gifts that each of us can give to others. Look for these in our Friday folders this week.
In Literacy Centers, we began our class novel,
We also spent the majority of our lunch times this week
watching the Disney version of Snow White
and the Seven Dwarfs. A chapter in
our class novel described Tomie’s reaction (ask your student, it is pretty
funny!) to watching Snow White, the
movie. The kids also enjoyed tasting
some old fashioned candy that was mentioned in the novel - Crows (which are actually just black licorice, shaped like Dots). We hope to finish this novel next
week.
We completed Unit 3 in spelling which focused on the
frequent spelling patterns for long a, frequent spelling patterns for the /j/
sound and, a review of long o and long i.
In cursive we were only able to spend time perfecting our undercurve stroke and will soon begin
practicing the downcurve stroke.
We continued our math focus on geometry and began working in
one of our math
textbooks to review polygons and the vocabulary associated with them (e.g.
congruent, symmetry, parallel, right angle).
We practiced our addition and subtraction facts in our binders and
employed some mental math strategies such as counting on or using doubles to
help us. When the students are
comfortable using the math fact binders, we will no longer take our class time
to work on them but will send them home as part of their daily math-fact
practice. We will need about two more
weeks working together in class before you will see the binders come home. Don’t worry, we will send home instructions
at that time.
In science, students learned that seeds use the food stored
in the cotyledon structure of a plant to grow.
The time when seeds begin to grow and develop is called
germination. We were able to witness first
hand that some seeds (just like humans) grow faster than others! We also learned the name for growing plants
in water – hydroponics. Students started
creating a poster to illustrate when and why hydroponics would be used instead
of soil.
In social studies, we continued learning about
geography. The kids learned the cardinal directions (north, south, east,
and west) and also the intercardinal
directions (northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast) which are also
sometimes referred to as intermediate directions. We will continue these lessons next week
through the use of art and maps.
Please help your child remember to select one assignment as
their “proud paper” and complete the reflection sheet about it. The proud paper and reflection sheet should
come back to school on Monday in the Friday folder. I’m hoping for full participation this
week. J
Reminders:
- All classroom volunteers must
attend a Safe Environment Training.
See below for details about how to sign up. For more information, please refer to
Ms. Hand’s letter sent out in the September 23rd Wednesday
envelope.
The training takes between 2 and 3 hours, depending
on the presenter and length of Q and A.
Please plan on attending the training as soon as possible. You can do
the training here or at any other parish/school in the archdiocese. I’ve listed
a few of the options here.
October 4 at St. Benedict Parish - 1:30 p.m.
October 6 at Our Lady of the
October 8 at St. Benedict Parish – 6:30 p.m.
October 12 at Assumption Parish Fellowship Hall –
8:45 a.m.
October 22, Assumption Parish Fellowship Hall - 7:00
p.m.
To register, or to find additional sessions:
1. Go to the Archdiocese of Seattle website: http://www.seattlearch.org.
2. Click on the Safe Environment logo.
3. Click: Register for classes.
·
Please
continue to sell giftwrap. The third and
Final Tally Day is October 7th. Third grade is currently in third place—we
can do it!
·
Thursday,
October 7th – Individual picture day and
Mass. Nice free dress.
·
Friday,
October 9th – Archdiocesan in-service, no school.
·
Friday,
October 30th – Next book
report due – Mystery (look for a form in your child’s binder next
Monday, or click on the link above)
. Have a wonderful weekend! J
Ms. Gonzales and Ms. Cahill
September 25, 2009
Dear 3B
Families,
A big THANK YOU to everyone for being so generous with your
time to volunteer in our classroom! We
received an overwhelming (and quick) response.
Also, thank you for being so flexible with your choices to make sure
everyone can have a chance to help!
This week in religion, students learned about the Church
community as a part of God’s creation.
Students worked in groups to create an ending for a story about
community and act it out for our class.
It was wonderful to watch the kids validate the importance of each
individual in our community. Students
discovered that they all needed each other not just to act out their skit, but
in every day life. We all have unique
gifts. Our gifts are meaningful and
irreplaceable.
We have officially started cursive! Your students worked toward completing a poem
in cursive as a “pretest” for the year.
At the end of the year they will be able to evaluate their work and feel
pride in their progress. Students
learned a very basic stroke – the undercurve.
We will spend some time perfecting this stroke (because it is so
critical) before we move on to other strokes and letters. We’re continuing to work through our spelling
program and worked this week on long a, i and o, and the digraphs ch, sh, th, and wh. Thank you for checking your child’s binder
each night to help them practice their preview words for the week as well as
their challenge words.
In reading we have been working
through our Daybooks. This week we have
been practicing recognizing main idea in both non-fiction and fiction. We have
also started the foundation work for writing descriptive paragraphs. First, students chose an object from a
variety of items presented to them in class.
Then they observed their object and wrote notes about their object’s properties. Students then applied that practice in their
“Paper Bag Object” homework assignment.
Students will soon realize that those sentences can very easily be
transformed into a descriptive paragraph!
Our math lessons continued their focus on geometry. This week students worked on “The Four
Toothpick Problem” by Marilyn Burns. In
this problem students had to work in groups to reposition 4 toothpicks in as
many ways as possible to create patterns using only right angles, (sometimes known
as square corners). This activity reinforced the students’
understanding of congruency and strengthened their spatial reasoning
skills. Next week we will play a game
with the toothpick patterns they created, forcing them to manipulate these
patterns in their minds and to think ahead about what pattern might be used
next.
In science the kids continued to nurture and observe their
sprouting seeds. We discussed the fact that the seeds managed to grow
with just one resource - water! They noticed that all the seeds (give or
take a few that didn’t make it) had grown and become swollen only because each
seed had absorbed the water provided it. In order to find out how much
water the seeds are able to hold, students used scales to measure the mass of
dry lima bean seeds. Then, students
measured the mass of the lima bean seeds again after being soaked in water for
24 hours. They used their math skills to figure out how much water had
actually been absorbed.
In social studies, students have moved from the study of communities
to a new area of geography – how to find their place in the world. We learned some of the tools that help us
find our way: maps, globes, compasses, stars, and GPS
devices. We learned that boaters use a
special word for maps (charts), and
that ancient mariners thought that straying too far from dry land would cause
them to fall off the flat earth. We learned about two famous explorers, Columbus and Magellan,
and even learned the old saying, “In 1400 and 92,
Please look for the white half sheet of paper included in
the Friday folder today. Starting this
week, the half sheet (a reflection paper) will come home on Fridays. Your child needs to select one assignment as
their “proud paper” and complete the reflection sheet about it. The proud paper and reflection sheet should come
back to school on Monday, and will be posted outside our classroom. Each week a new proud paper will be posted,
and the old proud paper will become a part of a third grade portfolio to take
home at the end of the year. Please help
your child remember to do this each week so his or her portfolio will be
meaningful.
Reminders:
- Wednesday, September 30th
– Fiction book report due. Also,
our second tally day. Please
continue to sell gift wrap!
- Wednesday, October 7th
- Individual picture day – nice free dress. Also final tally day
- Friday, October 9th
– Archdiocesan In-Service, no school.
Have a fantastic weekend! J
Ms. Gonzales and Ms. Cahill
September 17, 2009
Dear Families,
It was so nice to see all of you on Curriculum Night. It
is evident that we have a wonderful group of students and parents. If you still
have questions about our third grade curriculum or routines, please feel free
to contact me. Thank you to our room
parents: Patty Haller (and Art Parent!) and Kathy Weber.
The first week and a half we eased our way
into third grade and we’ve now hit the point of not having enough time to do
everything!
In
religion, we focused on the theme of creation.
We listened to the creation story from the book of Genesis and learned
that humans were given the huge task of caring for all of God’s creation. The
great responsibility God gave us connects to the class rules students created
last week – taking care of each other is a huge part of taking care of God’s
creation. We explored the book of Psalms
and learned that these were originally written as songs to praise God and His
beautiful creation. Students chose a
specific section from the book of Psalms to write and illustrate. We will turn these pages into a class book.
We
have been continuing to review manuscript letters in handwriting this
week. Today, students began a cursive
“pre-test”. They started to copy a poem
all in cursive. At the end of the year,
students will write the same poem in cursive to really see the evidence of
their growth! Next week we will begin to
introduce the initial cursive strokes and a few lowercase letters. We’ve now completed our first unit in
spelling. You can expect one homework
sheet a week to be devoted to spelling (usually on Thursdays). These spelling homework sheets are typically
meant to be done with a bit of parental support and often have a message for
parents attached to them.
Beginning
next week your children will have spelling words to study that they missed on
the spelling review given on the Friday of the previous week. If they have missed no spelling words, they
will only have the five preview words for the current spelling unit, and five
challenge words. The challenge words are
related to something we’ve been learning in class (in religion, math, science,
or social studies, for example). Please be sure that your child studies his/her
spelling words for five minutes every night in whatever way he chooses. (Check out the purple spelling practice ideas
in the “Ongoing Work” section of your child’s binder.) Your child should also be recording what they
have read at night in their assignment notebooks (they can simply draw an arrow
to show that it is the same book on subsequent nights).
In reading this week we focused on strategies that aid
comprehension: visualization, predicting, marking up the text, and
questioning. We had many opportunities
in our Daybooks to put these strategies to work. You should all have found the September book
report in your child’s binder under the “
At
this point in the year we are not looking for perfect spelling on book
reports. I do suggest they read the book
report out loud to themselves to see if their words make sense. You can then read the report and ask them
questions to get them to clarify their thoughts, if necessary.
Our
first math lessons have focused on geometry.
We used “The Four-Triangle Problem” by Marilyn Burns to get our minds
thinking about sides, polygons and congruency.
This also allowed us to practice our spatial reasoning skills. We’ve also started to create a geometry
glossary in our math notebooks with important geometry terms and vocabulary we
will need to know.
In
our first FOSS unit, “Structures of Life”, Students practiced using their
observation skills as they compared seeds from a variety of different fruits-
ask your child what a fruit is in scientific
terms. Groups also had a chance to plant
their own seeds using a minisprouter,
(a plastic container with a coffee filter that allows seeds to grow using only
water). They are beginning to practice
observing properties of items objectively and carefully, as a scientist would
do. We will continue extensions of these
observations next week.
Reminders/Upcoming Events:
·
Please continue
to sell gift wrap. Our first tally day is Wednesday, September
23rd.
·
Fiction Book
Report is due September 30th – students brought home their homework
binders in case they found time to work on it over the three day weekend.
Have
a wonderful weekend!
Ms. Gonzales and Ms. Cahill
September 11, 2009
Dear 3B Families,
Welcome to a the
2009-2010 school year! We’re off to a
great start. We spent much of our week
getting acquainted with routines, learning a new schedule and organizing our
third grade supplies. Students completed a reading survey so we can get to know
their unique reading style and preference, a spelling test and a math
inventory. Students will get a chance to
redo the spelling test and math inventory at the end of the school year to see
how much they’ve improved.
In writing, students
began their journals by writing about their feelings and thoughts about third
grade so far. They wrote cinquains
(five-line poems) about themselves as well, and then illustrated their poem
with a self-portrait.
We introduced our
Reading Challenge Wheel (kept in the reading section of the binder). This is meant to encourage the kids to read
literary genres they might not normally read.
We’ll check in on these from time to time to see if they are branching
out in their reading choices. The kids
were given their first book report form.
This can be found in the reading section of the binder (although some
kids opted to put it in the homework section).
The book report should be based upon a fiction book and is due September 30th. Each month the book report will be from a different
genre and may vary a bit in format. It will always be due the last school day
of the month, but may be turned in early – just be sure your child is putting
in their best effort and not rushing.
In math, the
students set up their math-fact binders.
These binders are meant to assist the students in learning their basic
math facts so that they can recite them with ease. We practiced taking a timed test and will
continue to use these in class before sending them home as part of the nightly
homework – we want to be sure the kids know how to use them correctly.
We began our third
grade Second Step program with a lesson about emotions and how these can change
over time, as well as conflicting emotions.
As in second grade, the Second Step program is the first of a series of
social skills programs we use here at ASB.
This program focuses mainly on empathy training, impulse control, and
anger management. Mrs. Landes, the school
counselor, visited our class to explain how she might be able to help when
we’re having difficulties in these areas.
We introduced one of our class themes, “All are welcome in this place”,
and began a class poster to remind us of it. The students also created a poster
with their own set of classroom rules, - they even signed it!
We introduced the
kids to our social studies and science curriculum this week and explained that
I teach science to both 3A and 3B, while Mrs. Eusebio teaches social studies to
both classes. Students learned about the
four strands of social studies (geography, history, civics and economics) and
in science we have started our first FOSS unit, “Structures of Life”. We reviewed the five senses and discussed how
important they are in scientific observation.
Throughout the year students will work through three FOSS Kits:
Structures of Life, Physics of Sound, and Earth Materials.
As we informed the
children, we will be doing a significant amount of learning with them as we
navigate a new grade level and curriculum.
We will be giving you an overview of our curriculum on Curriculum Night, Tuesday, September 15th
beginning at 7PM in the gym. We'll also talk about classroom procedures and
about ways to help your child succeed in third grade. This will be a time to
ask any general questions you have about the year. We have sent home a parent
survey for you to complete about your child.
This will give us a glimpse into the life of your third grader. If you
have not yet sent it in (the Walking Field Trip too), please send it in on
Monday, or bring it with you on Curriculum Night.
Classroom Helpers:
We welcome parents to come
into the classroom on a regular basis.
However, we will not invite parent help until October. This allows the kids to learn the new
routines, procedures, and atmosphere of the class on their own – an important
step towards greater independence, responsibility, and self-confidence in third
grade. The best message you can give
them is that they can do it on their
own and that you have every confidence in them. Your help is greatly appreciated
and needed, and we will be sending a monthly calendar home to schedule
volunteers for the classroom as we get closer to October.
Wednesday Envelopes: This
continues to be a means of communication from the school. If at all possible, please review its
contents (**especially Scrip) on Wednesday evening and return it on
Thursday. If you have Thursday mornings
free, we welcome you to volunteer as our Wednesday envelope sorter. This job takes about 10 minutes each Thursday
and younger siblings are welcome to come along.
Friday Newsletters:
In an effort to be kind to
our environment (and save money), I will be sending the Friday newsletter via
email only. Please email Ms. Cahill if
you would like to add any other email addresses to the list (mom, dad, work,
etc.). If you do not have access to
email, please send a note requesting a hard copy of the newsletter. The newsletters will always be posted on the
3rd grade page of the ASB website as well (http://www.asbschool.org/3bnews.htm).
As we start our journey, we
look forward to seeing you on Curriculum Night, September 15th. Please feel free to contact us with your
comments and questions. We are available to assist you in any way we can.
Christina Gonzales
524-7452
ext. 71
Christine Cahill
524-7452 ext. 60
September 8, 2009
Dear
Families,
We
had a great first day of school and are off to a great start! The kids spent time learning some of our
routines and procedures, sharing how they felt about the first day of third
grade, participating in community building activities, and practicing a quick
fire drill. Our kids also had their
first technology lesson. What a
day!
The
following is an overview of some general information that you might be
wondering about before Curriculum Night on September 15th. I will go over the curriculum and other information
and policies for the year that night.
However, should you have questions before that time, please feel free to
email or call with questions.
Morning Arrival: The third grade entry doors (on the west side of
the building) will be open starting at 8:15 each morning. Students may enter as soon as the doors open
and need not wait until the bell rings at 8:30.
They should put their materials in their cubbies and head straight into
the classroom to get an early start on their morning work. As with the rest of the school, any student
arriving after 8:35 (when the doors are closed) must report to the main office
for a tardy slip before entering the classroom.
Per school policy, students may not be dropped off before 8:15, but should be taken to Extended
Care.
Monthly Mass: This year, third grade has the privilege to attend
daily Mass on a regular basis. Our
scheduled dates are on the following
Wednesdays at 9:00am: September 9th,
October 14th, January 13th, February 10th,
March 10th, and May 12th. Please ensure your child is wearing the
appropriate Mass uniform on our scheduled Mass days. We will send out reminder emails to help with
this as well.
Snacks: Snacks will be eaten right after morning
recess. No sweets are allowed. An
extra 1/2 sandwich, fruit, veggie sticks, or quick protein snack is encouraged.
Not all students want or need this. Please discuss this with your child. *We do
not share snacks in third grade due to allergy concerns.*
Water Bottles: Students may keep a water
bottle at their table as long as it is not a distraction to their learning.
Please choose a water bottle that has some type of “click” top to it. Those with screw on/off lids tend to empty
themselves completely when tipped – all over the children’s work! Please do not put ice in, or freeze the
bottles, as they then “bleed” onto the kids’ work.
Homework: Homework will be assigned
Monday through Thursday, and should take no longer than 40 minutes to complete.
The children will write their homework in their assignment notebooks, which
live in their homework binder, and will be sent home each day. We ask that you
check this notebook to ensure that your child has completed all assignments to
the best of their ability.
Each
night students will have a homework sheet related to something we are studying
in class, in addition to a nightly routine of reading for 20 minutes, and
studying spelling words and math facts for 5 minutes each. Please
be sure to initial or sign the assignment notebook each night to verify your
child read for at least 20 minutes.
Students
will abbreviate the nightly routine in their assignment books as follows:
RR - Read
20 minutes and record the book title
SS - Study
Spelling
MF - Math
Fact practice
Spelling
study and math fact practice may be done using flashcards, worksheets, computer
games, writing them, etc.
Children
must learn to be responsible, and it is important to encourage your child to
complete the assignments carefully and completely. We work hard to teach children to read the
assignment description/instructions first (oftentimes out loud) before asking
for help. Please ensure that your
students are doing this at home as well. Under circumstances that you think are
sufficient, please email me to let me know when your child’s late homework will
be completed.
Book Reports: Each month, students will complete a book report at
home on a “just-right” book of their choice.
Every month will highlight a different genre. Book reports will be passed out at the
beginning of each month, and due the
last school day of the month given.
Books: Children are responsible for all school and library
books. Please return them promptly. Our library day is on Friday. Students will have time to read silently at
school each day, and can read a book they have chosen from school, home, or the
library at this time.
Birthdays: The students may have free
dress on their birthday celebration day. Students with summer birthdays will
have a celebration day on their ½ birthday. Parents are also welcome to join us for lunch on the birthday
celebration day. *A reminder: if invitations are passed out at school,
either the whole class needs to be invited, or all the girls/all the boys.
Treats are welcome, but not required.
If you choose to send a treat, please check with me concerning allergies, and
provide napkins as well. You may send the treat in the morning or bring it at
lunchtime (12:15-12:40).
Superstar: Each student will have a
school week dedicated to him or her. Students will make a display about him/herself to put on the bulletin board in our
classroom. Once during the week the
superstar may invite family members to join us at lunchtime (12:15-12:40). I
will send home a list of superstars the first week of school.
Names: Please put
names on all personal materials- especially coats, sweatshirts and sweaters.
School supplies will be shared as a community, so you do not need to label
these (pencils, markers, tissues, glue, etc.).
Field Trips: The walking permission
slip covers any trips to the park, city library, or neighborhood. Please let me know if you did not receive
this form and I’ll send one home. Also, please return the driver
information form if you want to drive on any field trips this year (available
in the office or online). You may turn these forms in on Curriculum Night or
send them to school with your child.
Classroom Volunteers: We welcome parents to come to the classroom on a
regular basis. There will be sign-ups at Curriculum Night for a few volunteer
opportunities. A volunteer calendar will
be sent out at the end of each month where you can sign up to help during
literacy or math centers, science etc. Your help is greatly appreciated and
needed, but we will wait until October to start having volunteers in the
classroom. This gives the students a chance to get to know us and our classroom
routines. We look forward to having you in the classroom starting in October.
Big Toy: Third grade may have Big Toy during morning recess,
depending upon parent availability. We
will have a sign up sheet for this on Curriculum Night.
Art Parents: We will again have this wonderful opportunity once
each month to learn about a variety of artists and artistic styles thanks to
the help of our parents. The dates of
our Art Parent activities will be available on Curriculum Night so that you can
sign up to help.
Thank
you for all your support in getting us off to a great start. Again, please let
me know if you have any questions or concerns. I look forward to seeing you on
Curriculum Night!
Sincerely,
Christina
Gonzales
206
524-7452 ext. 71