Bugs! Bugs! Bugs!

Science is turning into the favorite part of the day, and the kids are loving it!  They are so engaged and excited about all our "visitors" that they can't wait for science to start, which is the last part of the day.  In case your 3B child has not told you, our most recent visitors are fruit flies.  Students are watching their populations grow and decline as well as the various stages of a fruit flies life cycle.  Besides that, our plants are growing like crazy and we will be meeting our next "guest" tomorrow.    Wonder what it will be?

I am posting some pictures from our recent "field trip" outside to explore plants and animals around our school grounds.  This gave us good data to talk about what we saw more of, plants or animals, and further our discussion on "organisms".  The pictures are pretty cute if I do say so myself.  :)

Other things that have been happening are we have launched our "work on writing" as well as "read to someone" last week.  Students are building their stamina and continue to improve showing me they are ready to jump into guided reading.  We will continue with building our "read to someone strategies" this week as well as launch "word works".  Next week, we will be ready for total literacy and Daily 5 time!  Can't wait!

Last Friday we had some wonderful discussions about September 11th.  The students are very curious about that day and we had some emotion as well, including from the teacher.  I hope you had some time this weekend to watch some of the TV episodes about September 11th and have further discussions with your 3rd grade student.  Our discussion will continue today and tomorrow as well.  We will be creating a human flag with the 4th and 5th graders today in memory of September 11th.  Look for pictures of that to be posted soon!

We are wrapping up unit 1 in math.  We have some discussion and lessons to cover on making change, reviewing number grids, and then we are looking at unit 1 assessment.  There is no real way to study for these assessments so don't be looking for your 3B child to bring something home to study. Just a reminder though that there are many online games posted on my blog page that students can work on to reinforce concepts we are working on in school.  I know there are a few students who have been using them outside of class.  Super!

Elementary students will also be starting MAPs testing soon.  I think it is next week, but I am not sure of the schedule yet.  These are the district assessments that students take online at the beginning of the year and the end of the year to show growth.  Look for a letter from Mrs. Sovereign or comments from myself   to be sent home soon.  No need to stress about them.....all we ask is that students try their best.

Have a great week!  Enjoy the day as it sounds like a cool front is moving in!

Fun Field Trip!

I am sure your 3B child shared with you how wonderful our field trip was last week so I won't go into all the detail.  We had a super time (although it was very quick).  Hopefully some of you will return with your child/children to enjoy the eagles and toys.

Here are a few pictures of the students with the eagles.  Sorry if I don't have everyone.

Last Month of School. . .So Much to Do!

Well, hard to believe, but May is here! I really can't believe how quickly the time has flown by! It seems like just yesterday we were starting school and now we are almost to the end. Kind of sad for me. . . although I do enjoy my summer. Well, I just hope the students stay focused and working as hard as they currently are. We are cruising through so much and it is going very well. Keep it up 3B!

I am sending home the math test from last week. Please notice that I have written the percent and grade each child would have received if they were given a grade as they will be in 4th grade. It is a little "eye opener" for some students who like to rush as well as for those students who need to try a little harder. While we don't give letter grades in 3rd grade, students will be given them in 4th grade. On the math test, every option for an answer was a point, whether correct or needing to stay blank. The reason for that was because some problems has more than one possible answer and students needed to check all options. I think you will see what I mean when you look at the test itself. These do not need to be returned to school, but I hope you take a moment to look them over. There are a ton of concepts and processes in geometry, but I was pleased with their understanding of the concepts and recognition of geometry terms.

Science test will be coming home tomorrow or Wednesday as well. There will be grades on part of the test, as if in 4th grade, but not all being some are short answer. Again, they do not need to be returned to school.

In literacy, students are loving their book clubs!!!! They are having some of the best discussions as well so that is exciting for me to see! Every day someone ask me when we are doing book clubs. . . .which is wonderful as well. The purpose of book clubs is to build reading skills and strategies through discussion while building enjoyment in reading as well. Some students are very hesitate to share their thoughts while they read for fear of being wrong or other issues, but eventually, through practice, they see the benefits of sharing thoughts and that it is alright to be wrong sometimes. We will continue our book clubs through the month as some groups are in the middle of their books while others will be starting a new book. During this time, I also pull in my guided reading lessons to correspond with the books they are reading and the needs they demonstrate. These lessons range from comparing and contrasting, recognizing cause and effect, building communication while reading, and looking at word parts. A note will be sent home soon asking students to bring in a beverage as we would like to turn this into a type of "book chat" as if we are a Barnes and Noble drinking coffee - only we will be having juice or something else whild discussing our books. Something fun to throw in the activity!

Just a reminder that we will be taking a field trip next Friday to Wabasha, Minnesota. I have two parent volunteers already but need 1 more. If you are interested, please contact me as soon as possible to get that finalized. More information will be sent this week about what to bring, times of departure, and necessary information. Look for that soon!

We had a super time at Vernon last week for Arbor Day. Hopefully all of you got your tree planted. We still have each tree that my children planted in 3rd grade at our house, and they are growing like crazy. Look for pictures of our trip to be posted some time this week as well. My evenings are busy with my daughter's track meets out of town, but I will get them up sometime soon.

I also need to make one last comment about our biography presentations. I have uploaded them to a site called "Teachertube" for reasons that "YouTube" is blocked at school. They are having technological difficulties - just my luck- but I will hopefully have them embedded on each child's blog page this week as well for you to view and comment. I should also have the DVD made by the end of the week as well. While I love all the technology that students have access to, sometimes it takes a while to get it all "perfected". So thanks for being so understanding. . . .

Have a great week and enjoy the sunshine. . .hopefully it will stick around a while!