Field Trip...This Friday! Walking Taco...Thursday! Fun Times Ahead!

Hello everyone!  Did you enjoy the sunshine we had this past weekend?  We were definitely due to have a nice weekend after all of the "yuck" we have been having.  I was down in Kansas City for my daughter's basketball tournament and it was 90+ degrees on Saturday!  My body wasn't used to those warm temps yet but it was very nice!

As the title states, we have our field trip coming up this Friday.  Just a reminder to send back the blue paper that was included in the packet of information about the field trip sent home last Thursday.  The blue slip needs to be returned stating who will be dropping the child off at the bus so we can leave around 7:30.  Again, if your child is late and the buses pull out, your child is still expected to attend school and will do work in the office.  (Let's hope that doesn't happen!).  Your 3B child should have brought home a packet of information with details about the field trip.  Hopefully you have seen it by now.  If not, please call me or email me as soon as possible.  We are looking forward to a wonderful trip!

Those that completed mastering all of their multiplication facts will celebrate with a "Walking Taco" party this Thursday at 2:30!  Those children who earned the celebration may also bring a beverage to drink with them to school on Thursday.  We will be eating yummy walking tacos and having some fun to celebrate.  If your child did not master his/her facts, they will work on something else during this time.  Sorry....it won't be as fun.

Our Hall of Fame presentations will be next Tuesday, May 17th, from 2:30-3:15 in the Discovery Center (library).  Students need to have their costumes to school by Monday, May 16th, for a dress rehearsal.  I will also be sending their oral presentations home this week to practice every night.  Please encourage them to practice a lot, working towards memorizing their presentations the best they can.  We will also be sharing our Animoto book trailers (I know some of you have seen them already at home.  Aren't they cool?). Hope to see you next Tuesday from 2:30-3:15.  Stop in anytime as it is kind of like a "come and go" event.  :)

We are finishing up a unit in social studies this week so look for study materials to come home towards the end of the week with the assessment to be next Monday or Tuesday.  A note will be sent home with the materials to let you know exactly.  I just want to give you a "heads up" to be looking.

Enjoy the week and warm weather!

Very Important Information! The Good and the Bad

It looks like it might try to start acting more like spring now that May has hit.  Too bad it has been a cold and rainy month of April, although it has kept the students a little calmer.  Well, May is here.  The countdown begins.  The students and I were just discussing all that we have to get done this month, and it is A LOT!

The students are working hard on their biography projects.  They have started writing their presentations, learned how to download pictures and photos from the Internet, and today we start using the Flip Camera to make videos and learn how to upload video to our laptops.  There are a lot of preparation steps to do before we can begin making our Animoto "Book Trailer" that is similar to a movie trailer.  The students are loving it, who doesn't love learning new technology?  We are aiming to have all activities complete by Thursday, May 12th.  I would like to then have a dress rehearsal on Monday, May 16th.  That is when students must have their costumes, props, and materials ready.  We will go through it as if the parents were here watching.  I am then aiming to have the Hall of Fame and inviting parents, grandparents, etc. sometime on Tuesday, May 17th.  It will probably be the last hour of the day, but I am still checking on some schedules.  So what I need the students to start doing at home is gathering their costumes together and any props they would like to have out.  Soon, you will be seeing the students bring home their oral presentations to practice as well.  They need to be responsible to practice at home as it is nice to have much of the oral presentations memorized.

Start thinking of what your child needs for his/her costume that represents the person he/she read about and have it ready by May 16th.  Thank you.  If you have any questions, feel free to let me know.

Next Friday is our big field trip to Wabasha, Wisconsin.  With this field trip, students will need to arrive at school before a "normal day", as the buses will pull out at 7:30.  To make you aware of this and start planning, there will be many sheet sent home this Thursday with information about the upcoming field trip.  Please be looking for those sheets of information as some of them need to be returned to the school with signatures.  The information will include departure times, what is allowed on bus, medication forms, etc.  Please be looking for those this Thursday.  Our three chaperones for this trip are Emma's mom, Libby's mom, and Kailyn's mom, with Madison's mom as a possibility if we need her.  Thank you to those parents who volunteered to go along!  It's going to be a super time!

My last comment is one I am sad to have to talk about again, but it is needed.  The students may have told you that the last two weeks I have been gone some days due to district meetings (April is a crazy month of meetings).  Anyway, last week when I was gone a day, the behavior of many 3B students was very disrespectful and rude towards that sub and classmates.  There was a lot of arguing, shouting, attacks made towards each other, rude/bully games being played at recess, and just disrespect to her and other classmates.  It was not just "one or two" students, it was a majority.  Mrs. McCabe was involved in some discussions, and the students and I had a beneficial chat when I returned Friday morning.  I believe it is all about choices, as many of these things do not happen unless their is a sub.  The students know better than to do many of the things that did happen.  So, after my talk with the students and with Mrs. Sovereign as well, she and I have decided that if there are any more behaviors or problems that occur involving disrespect, threating, bullying, irresponsibility, those students demonstrating those problems WILL NOT go on the field trip next Friday.  I have discussed this with the students.  They know Mrs. Sovereign is supporting this because the behaviors demonstrated by many while I was gone last Thursday were extremely rude.  If your child is not allowed to go on the field trip due to his/her behavior demonstrated, I will be sure to give you a call, as I would anyway.  Your child will then attend school for the normal hours and sit in the office or Mr. Wiley's classroom working on schoolwork all day.  It will NOT be a day to stay home and have off!

I hate to go this route, but the behavior of some students needs to stop and Mrs. Sovereign feels there needs to be a consequence.  I agree.

I must say that it was not all students.

Hopefully we can pull through this idea of "goofing off and bullying" when Mrs. Kerian is gone to meetings as these behaviors don't happen when I am here.  It totally does break my heart to know I have a great class and return to comments left by a sub that show they were not "that great".  Disappointing is a better word.  I have one more meeting next week....hopefully it will all go smoothly.  Crossing my fingers.

One a different note, the upcoming "Walking Taco" party will be held in the near future for those students who made it.  Once I set a date with the other 3rd grade teachers, we will be sending a note home to let you know.
Have a great week and enjoy the sunshine.

It's Crunch Time! Field Trip, Hall of Fame, Walking Taco Party

I hope you all enjoyed your nice, long weekend!  Although the weather was not perfect, as is today, but it was nice to have a little time to relax with family and friends.  Now...back at it!

Hopefully everyone returned their Biography Project today.  We will be starting to write our presentations today as well as start experimenting with downloading pictures for our Animoto movies.  We were suppose to have one of the computer labs to use all week, but Jr. High is not done with MAPs testing so we will have to wait a week to start.  :(  If your child did not bring his/her biography project (book and notes) back today, please do so tomorrow so he/she does not get behind.  Look for more information in the future about attending our Hall of Fame to meet these wonderful people of the past.

The deadline for mastering your multiplication facts is this Friday.  I will try and squeeze in a lot of testing, as will my senior seminar student, before the end of the week.  So....there are A LOT of students who have a long ways to go.  I hope there are many more who will be able to participate in our "Walking Taco" party!  Keep practicing those facts!

This Friday we will be taking a small field trip to Vernon to participate in various stations/activities for Arbor Day.  Although at this time the weather sounds great, please pay attention to the forecast.  It is recommended that students dress in layers, as it starts out chilly and may warm up throughout the day.  Students should NOT wear shorts, capris, or open toed shoes!  Please wear jeans or running pants and tennis shoes.  Students may bring hats if they would like as well.  We will be taking sack lunches from the school so students do not have to worry about bringing a lunch from home.  Depending on the weather, you may want to be sure to put sunscreen on your child if he/she burns easily.  If it is sunny and not muddy, we will be outside for most of the day.

Have a great week and stay warm!

So Much To Do.....Time Running Quickly!

Happy Monday 3B family!  I hope you enjoyed the warm weekend and had some fun outside.  It was nice to have all of that sunshine, but I did not enjoy the thunderstorms (although the lightning was amazing!).

Well, the middle of April is fast approaching and before we know it, it will be the end of May.  Time is going by so quickly.  With that being said, we have a lot of things to touch base on.  I will briefly discuss some of the following:
  
     *     MAPs testing is done for 3B with the exception of 3 students who were absent and need
            to do make-up tests today.  The students tried hard and did very well overall!  You will see
            your child's results at the end of the year when scores are sent home with report cards.

     *     Students have until the end of April to earn their "Walking Taco" party by mastering all
            their multiplication facts.  This is the time to push through them and work hard!

     *     I mentioned last week that 3B will be taking a field trip to Lark Toy Museum and the
            Eagle Museum in Wabasha on Friday, May 13th.  I have had two parents volunteer to be
            chaperones and am looking for one more.  If you are interested, please email me or call
            me.  If we have more than three parents interested, their names will go into a hat and three
            names will be drawn.  If you are interested, please let me know by the end of the week
            so that those parents going will have ample time to let employers know in case they need
            to take the day off.

     *     We will be having our "pizza party" for those students who returned their Book-It calendars
            all six months.  I am glad to say that this will include almost half the class!  Yeah!  We will
            be having our pizza next Tuesday, April 19th.  Those students who returned their
            calendars will have lunch with me as I will provide Pizza Hut pizza as well as a beverage.
            Those children who did not make it all six months will have lunch in the cafeteria with
            one of the other 3rd grade teachers supervising.

     *     Biography Reading - Hopefully you have all started working on reading and taking notes
            for our upcoming biography project.  Just a reminder that the students should have their
            book read and notes taken by April 25th.  That is all they have to do at home.  We will
            write our presentation and work on our video using Animoto at school.  So....keep
            reading.  Remember to return the book with the notes on April 25th!

     *     You will see that I am sending lots of papers home today.  Two of the pieces coming home
            are your child's last science assessment on Force and Motion as well as your child's
            unit assessment for math for geometry.  I do not need these back or signed, but I just wanted
            to call your attention to them to take a look at them.  

Thank you for signing and returning my letter about responsibility that I sent home last week.  I appreciate your help and cooperation with this as it was becoming a big, big problem.  Together we are stronger than alone!  So thank you!

Enjoy the week! Keep reading and taking notes with your 3B child on his/her biography.  It will be due before you know it.

Hello Strangers! Where is Mrs. Kerian?

Hello everyone.  I know it has been a long time since I have posted a blog.  Life is pretty crazy right now in Mrs. Kerian's world, with committees, kids' schedules, and life, so I do apologize.  You haven't been forgotten.  :)

As the note sent last week from Mrs. Sovereign stated, we will be starting MAPs testing today.  To help the students understand the importance of these tests, they have each set goals in which they would like to reach for each of the four test given (math, reading, language and science).  Students will be working hard to take ownership in increasing their scores from the fall, which I have no doubt in my mind they will.  Please help out this week by making sure that your child eats a healthy breakfast and gets enough rest at night.  We will be starting test today and continue on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.  If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me.  It is also very helpful to schedule dentist or doctor appointments around these testing days so that the children can take the test with their classmates and feel comfortable.  Thanks for you help and cooperation!

I thought I needed to make a comment about lunches.  I realize that I am not the one paying for everyone's lunches, nor do I feel everyone should eat all of their lunch every day.  We all don't like everything on a school lunch.  I do feel I have MANY students not eating ANYTHING at lunch and just wanted to post a quick comment about it.  Please discuss with your child the importance of eating lunch, what they like, so they can have some "brain power" for the afternoon.  When I see a child take ketchup for their fries, but they don't eat any, I do encourage them to eat some as it appears if the intentions were there. Some of the students are not happy with me when I say, "You took ketchup for your fries so please eat 5," but I do worry that they are not eating anything.  Again, I do not say, "You must clean your plate" or even close.  Just want to make sure they get some nourishment in their system. I hope you do not think I am overstepping on anyone's toes.  I don't want it to appear that way.  I just want parents to be aware that many students are not eating anything for lunch.  Part of the issue is our time to eat is short and many students want to socialize.  Don't we all?  :)   So please have a chat with your 3B students just to remind them of the importance of food for "brain power".

A fun activity the students will be starting tomorrow is our biography project.  (I mentioned this a month ago but we ran into some problems with the computers).  We have been reading and discussing biographies and autobiographies in depth.  Now the students are ready to read and prepare for our activity we call the "Hall of Fame".  They are very excited about it.  I am excited as well because we are trying something new this year with a computer program called "Animoto".  So... please look for information to be sent home with your child tomorrow as well as a contract and a book to read.  Fun times!!!

The Crestwood 3rd graders will venture north on their "big" field trip in May.  We are going to Lark Toys in Kellogg and an Eagle Museum in Wabasha on May 13, 2011.  This is a Friday (yes, we are crazy for taking kids on a field trip on Friday the 13th!).  Each class is taking along 3 chaperones.  If you are interested in going along, please email me or call me to let me know.  If I have more than 3 parents volunteer to chaperone, all names will go in a hat to be drawn fairly.  The kids are excited and there will be more information shared as the day approaches.

We wrapped up our unit in science on Force and Motion.  I still have one student who missed part of the test who needs to finish but I hope to get those assessments sent home this week with students.  Some parents have been anxiously waiting for those results.  I will be putting letter grades on the assessments (some parts) so that students can see what type of grade they would have gotten if they were in 4th grade.  (Trying to prepare them for 4th grade).  We started our next unit in social studies on "communities" as well.

Congratulations to the few people who have earned the "Walking Taco" party by knowing all their multiplication facts.  Students have until the end of April to master all their facts and participate in the Walking Taco party.  Keep practicing!  Taylor comes over to do assessments every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!  You can do it!

Have a great week!

Kryslynn's Book Review of Captain Fact Space Adventures

Rachel's Review of Little House in the Big Woods

Libby's Video Book Review of Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules

Emma's Book Review of Geronimo Stilton

Tech Open House this Friday!

Wow!  Time is just slipping by so quickly.  We have been so busy the last few weeks.  Throw that in with a snow day and we are left with lots to do.  Before we know it, April will be here and we will be looking at  nearing the end of the school year.

A note was sent home last week inviting you to our Tech Open House this Friday, March 18th from 6-7 PM.  Students can bring their parents into their classroom and share what teachers have set up for the evening.  This can be using the smartboard, anything with lap tops, math games, science activities, and other uses of technology.  I have many things for the students to share this Friday so I hope that you will take some time to stop in 3B and see what they have to show you!!!!  There will also be a Book Fair in the Discovery Center (so bring those checkbooks) held by the PTO as well as cookies and punch.  Hope to see you with your 3B student this Friday!!!!!!

I also mentioned in my last post that I would be sending an activity on biographies home soon.  Due to MAPS testing coming up in April and lack of computers available, I had to push that activity back a month so look for more information to be sent home next week.  Without going into detail, this activity revolves around reading a biography and using a computer program called Animoto to create a digital story of the person from the biography.  We are adding a new twist to it this year and I know the students are going to have a great time!  Stay tuned for more information.....

The quarter did end last Friday and report cards will be sent home next Monday.  I wanted to have the science test on Force and Motion wrapped up before the end of the quarter, but the amount of snow days we had this quarter put a damper in getting that done.  We are close, but I don't think we will get it completed. Look for materials to study for science to be sent home sometime this week with the assessments being held next week.  Remember that I send home the information and study material very early to allow for ample study time so please work with your student on being responsible in his/her study habits.

That brings me to my final comment of the week. I don't know if your child has told you but we have been having some serious issues with responsibility and respect in 3B.  Last week an assignment was sent home and 6 students out of 20 returned it.  Students have been goofing off and being very disrespectful in specials (mainly music and art) to the point that I may have to go in and sit with the class to make sure they are acting as they should.  We have had a lot of disrespectful comments being made at recess between classmates that are hurtful and cause a lot of tears.  Now, while all these things are common this time of year, they also need to be addressed.  Students have shown that they can be very respectful and responsible while in our classroom, but the moment they leave or transition to something else, including PE, things seem to fall apart.  Because of this, I will be going back to using the "Character Counts Communique" sheets that I was using at the beginning of the year.  They are the green slips that students fill out if they have broken any of the pillars of Character Counts.  The student will then take the note home to be signed and returned to me.  This will hopefully open up communication between school and home.  I want to stress that this isn't EVERYONE in 3B, hardly.  But it is a problem (started when I was gone on vacation) and it needs to be dealt with.  I have chatted with the students.  They are aware that we will be working hard on staying positive and making the right choices.  But for those times that they don't, I want parents to be aware.

If you have any questions about the above comment, feel free to contact me.

Enjoy the week.  Sounds like there may be some sunshine coming our way....FINALLY!