The Final Countdown!

First off I want to thank my "3B Family and Parents" for the caring cards, phone calls, and thoughts during the last week. My heart is saddened because I lost my brother, but it makes it a little easier with caring students and parents. So. . .thank you very much! It was nice to return yesterday to so many hugs! I needed them!!!

This will not be a long blog, but I thought you would like to know about some upcoming events to prepare for before the year is over. It is hard to believe that time is winding down. . .it really doesn't feel like it to me. The students have been real "troopers" and hanging in there, which is great! Here is what we have to prepare for:

1. This Friday, the students in 3rd grade who mastered all of there multiplication facts will be having their "Taco in a Bag" celebration. These 7 students in 3B will be eating a walking taco as an afternoon snack at 2:30. We would like those students who mastered all of their facts to also bring along something to drink. All other components (plates, etc.) will be provided. Great job to those students! Students who did not master all facts will not participate in the celebration and therefore do not need to bring a beverage.

2. Next Thursday, May 27th, 3rd graders will walk to the park for a little exercise and fun. At this time, I am not sure if we will be needing sack lunches. I will let you know about that by the end of the week.

3. Next Wednesday, May 26th, all parents are invited to our end of the year "Writer's Workshop Social". This is a time where we will celebrate our writing accomplishments with you and enjoy some snacks. An invitation will be sent home by Friday, but I wanted to let you know to mark your calendars. This celebration will take place in the cafeteria at 2:30. Parents who signed up to supply snacks for our final celebration of the year will receive a letter by Friday as well, reminding them to supply snacks for this celebration. Students and parents will also use this time to clean out lockers and get items home (lucky you! Be sure to bring extra sacks! :)

4. Next Friday, May 28th, will be the last day of school with a 3 hour early out. We have planned a fun morning with a "field day" for students and teachers to participate in as a last day celebration. There are lots of fun activities planned so I can't wait! Go 3B!

5. We are currently taking a math test, which will probably be the last one of the year. We will also be squeezing in a quick social studies test next Tuesday. Look for study material to be sent home this Friday.

What else???? HMMMM????? If your child has a library book or book from my classroom, I would like them returned by Wednesday, May 26th so that I can see what is missing and returned.

Next week will be my last "offical" blog of the school year! I am sure I will have LOTS to say then. :)

Enjoy the sunshine!

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!