Upcoming School Events - Mark Your Calendars!

ELL Parent Night - Monday, October 3rd 7:00PM

All ELL parents are invited to an ELL information night hosted by our ELL teacher Emily Lundeen.  This is your opportunity to hear an overview of the program and ask questions. 

Family Self-Defense Night- Wednesday, Oct. 5th 6:30-8:30 PM

The safety of our children is of great importance to all of us.  We do our best to keep them safe at home and school, but situations may arise that we cannot control.  These incidents can happen anywhere, at anytime, and with anyone.  It is not just an issue in the big cities or always a “stranger danger" attack.  Parents are often unsure of what to say to their young children and how much information they should provide to them.  Mrs. Andrews will provide an age appropriate, hands on self-defense workshop in which you may participate with your family. We will be practicing physical defenses, so please have your child wear comfortable clothing and safe gym shoes.  Older siblings and all family members are encouraged to participate.  Permission slips have been sent home, but additional permission slips are available in the office and from Mrs. Andrews. The number of participants will be limited due to safety and space issues, so be sure to return the slip promptly. 
Go to Mrs. Andrew's blog for more information.

Picture Day- Thursday, October 6th

Have your student bring their best "smile"

Reflections Entries Due Friday October 7th 

For students choosing to participate in the PTA Reflections program this year entitled "Diversity means..."  the submissions are due 10/7.  The PTA is hoping for 100 entries.


NO SCHOOL MONDAY 10/10
NOON DISMISSAL ON
WEDNESDAY 10/12

Family Reading Night - Thursday, October 11th  6:15- 7:45PM

Focusing on the 2nd - 5th Grade Reader

"Reading is for Meaning"

The purpose of this evening is to be introduced to the different stages of reading and to understand that reading goes beyond word recognition.  The primary focus will be on Newly Fluent and Truly Fluent readers through exploring text complexity in the various genres of literature.  Matching readers to text that supports interactive and engaged reading is an important part of building student comprehension.  Plan to come and attend 3 different breakout sessions throughout the evening.  Registration is required and a form was sent home on Friday 9/30. 

Go to Mrs. Denicolo's blog for more information. 

Together, We Can Make a Difference!  

FYI - Updated Snack Policy - Due to the number of spills Mr. Boyle has had to clean up throughout the school, we are going to have to make an adjustment to our snack policy.  Students may drink water only in the classroom and need to limit their snacks to finger food only.  Unfortunately, spilling fruit cups, squirting yogurt and leaky juice boxes make for a sticky mess  on our carpeted classroom floors. Please send a healthy snack that cannot spill in anyway.  Good options are vegetables, crackers, pretzels, cheese and whole fruit. The third grade teachers will be adhering to this rule. If your child does bring a "messy" snack they will not be allowed to eat it until lunch. 

Now, here's what's happening in third grade's neck of the woods.

Citizenship 

We have been discussing the  4 steps of Conflict Resolution.  We have already learned that ...

1. Talking through a problem is better than ignoring it or fighting. 

2. When you are angry or upset, it's better to stop and cool off before confronting someone.

3.  It's best to talk it out using "I" messages  

The last lesson in this model is listening during a conflict situation.  Students will learn that it's important to really listen to the other person's point -of -view and feelings.  They will learn techniques to become better listeners.  We will review all 4 steps the following week.

Reading -

Week of 10/3-10/7

As we move into a new month we will be focusing on the genre of "Fantasy".  Fantasy is something that could never happen it real life (ex. talking animals, dragons and make believe).  The first story in this genre is Little Grunt and the Big Egg by Tomie DePaola.  The story is about how life changes in the Grunt tribe when a baby dinosaur hatches from the huge egg that Little Grunt drags home for brunch.

Vocabulary -  omelet, brunch, peaceful, escape, erupting, lava

The reading strategy this week is Self-Questioning. When good readers come across a part of a story they find confusing, they ask themselves a question to try to clear up the confusion.  Self-questioning about word relationships can help the reader gain a deeper understanding of how and why an author uses certain words in a story.  There will be a comprehension quiz on this story Thursday, October 6th.


Weeks of 10/10 and 10/17 
For these two weeks the students will be working on BATS!  What a great time to look more closely at the only flying mammals.  We will begin our study comparing and contrasting fantasy (fiction) and reality (non-fiction).  First, we start by reading the beloved classic Stellaluna by Janell Cannon.  The we move on the Zipping, Zapping, Zooming Bats by Ann Earle,  This an informative non-fiction piece about bats.   We will be doing some activities with both books and finishing off our study with BAT RESEARCH!  Students will create a bat a poster including the bat facts they learned.  We will also be discussing the difference between facts and opinions during this time.  What your opinion of bats?

Our School - Wide Reading Incentive has begun.  Check the tab on top labeled "Reading Stars"  for more details.  Start reading!

Grammar-
We are finishing up  learning about the 4 types of sentences and moving into learning about synonyms and antonyms.  Synonyms are words the have similar meaning

Antonyms are words that have opposite meanings.Below are some fun sites  to help the students practice.

Synonym Sam's Lab

Synonyms EZ Match
Same Difference - Antonyms and Synonyms
Antonyms Millionaire
Opposites Train Game
Antonym Match

Spelling-
Week of 10/3-10/7 List #5, Test Friday 10/7
Week of 10/10-10/14 - NO TEST


Writing-
During the month of October, the students will be learning how to write well-developed paragraphs.  The learning targets for the month are..

1.What do good paragraphs look like?

2.What are main ideas and details?

3.What is elaboration?

4.What is an ending sentence?

5.What does it mean to indent?

6.How do you use a graphic organizer to brainstorm ideas?

We will start our unit with immersion.  This means the students will be shown multiple examples of good paragraphs.  In this close study the students will be looking for things paragraphs have in common. Students will learn that a paragraph is a group of sentences that have to do with a particular topic.  Good paragraphs have a main idea that is supported by details and elaboration. 


Math -
Third Grade-
We will continue with Unit 2 working on number stories and multi-digit addition and subtraction problems.  The study guide for Unit 2 will go home Thursday Oct. 13 and be reviewed on Tuesday, Oct. 18.  The Unit 2 math test will Wed. Oct. 19th .
Accelerated Math -

The Unit 2 study guide will be coming home on Monday, October 3rd and will be due on Thursday, October 6th.  The test will be Friday, October 7th.  We will begin Unit 3 after Columbus Day.  Unit 3 focuses on multiplication and division.


Science -
This week we will finish up our unit on the human Body.  A study guide will go home on Monday. This guide is to help the students review the material presented in class.  Students should continue to practice the scientific names of the bones.  The Bones and Muscles test will be Friday, October 7th. 


Social Studies-
We will begin our new Social Studies unit on maps and globes.  Students will be expected to know...


Why do we use maps?
How are maps and globes different?
What are the tools that are used to help read maps and globes ? (map key, etc.)
How do we figure out the distance from one place to another ? (map scale)
What are the cardinal and intermediate directions?

That's about it for the next two weeks.  Make sure to check individual 
classroom blogs for specific classroom information.