Is it Spring or Winter?

I hope everyone enjoyed their three day weekend. It was nice to have an extra day to catch up on things and rest as it appears I am getting a little cold.  Not fun!  Based on the weather forecast, I am not sure what the rest of the week holds.  Does not sound good for tomorrow.  Guess there is nothing we can do about Old Man Winter is there?

We have been having an awesome time in 3B!  Hopefully your child has told you about our blogging adventures with students in China and Michigan. The kids are enjoying the comments they a getting from peers across the country and world as well as leaving comments for them.  This week we a starting a new aloud that the students in China are also going to listen to.  We will then chat, blog, and tweet our thoughts about the book with them.  A school in Australia may be joining as well.  Exciting times ahead in 3B!

Through our Twitter friends in China, we have been learning about the Chinese New Year.  We hope to do some type of celebration on February 10th in connection with what they have taught us.

Just another reminder that parent teacher conferences are coming up. A letter will be sent home today with directions on how to sign up online. These conferences will be student led so it is necessary that your 3B student attend the conference with you.  If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me.

The focus in literacy this past week and coming week (pretty much all the time) has been in monitoring your comprehension.  It is important that the students realize if they are comprehending what they are reading.  I have shown the students how to use post it notes to track their thinking and focus in on their reading.  Many commented how it helped them remember what they are reading. The tracks we used are in the picture below.  I encourage students to use them as much as possible to record their thinking and give more purpose to read.  Students will be using their reading tracks to make a blog post about their book at the end of the week.

I will be sending information about Valentines Day soon as many students have been asking.

Stay safe and enjoy the crazy weather!

Wow! It's is Cold Outside!

A few days ago all we needed was a light coat.  Today we need many layers, a heavy coat, hats, mittens, scarves....A LOT!  It is freezing outside!

We have been very busy in 3B.  Lots going on and tons of learning!  Here is a glimpse of everything we have been doing:

1.  Twitter friends - Through our class Twitter account, we have been learning from our friends in China about the Chinese New Year.  We will be celebrating the Chinese New Year on February 11th with them as well.  I am working with their teacher to set up a book discussion that we will also be doing with them.  With our Twitter friends in Australia, we have also learned that their school year runs the end of January to the beginning of the following December.  December thru January is their "summer".  Crazy isn't it?  The students are really getting into Twitter and learning across the world from one another.  We have also been commented on their student blogs in China and Canada with them commenting on ours.  Fascinating to think that we can communicate with one another across the world so simple!  We love it.

2.  We are also commenting on the blogs of 3rd graders from Michigan, although they are having some technical difficulties.  Hopefully this week we will start this "blogging challenge" that 3B is involved in.  They have commenting on our student blog pages already and will continue throughout the year.  Please remember that we would love to have parents/relatives comment (as some of you do already).

3.  Students are jumping into multiplication and division in math.  We have gone over the shortcuts for multiplying by 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s.  Please work with your child in grasping these multiplication facts quickly as it is expected that they work on them at home.  There are also many multiplication online games to the right of my blog page (scroll down) that the students can practice on as well.  Any that they do not know, encourage them to draw an array or picture to solve.

4.  Simple Machines is the topic of our science unit.  Students got to "play" with toys and talk about how "push" and "pull" are involved.  We are starting to get into the simple machine of a "lever" today and tomorrow.  

5.  Within our literacy, we are currently working on the strategies of questioning and paraphrasing.  Other skills we are focusing on are adding inflected endings (such as ing and ed) as well as adding -er to words to change the meaning.

6.  Remember the importance of having your child read at home every night.  I can really tell which of my students are avid readers and which are not based on the improvement they are making.  We do not have a lot of homework in 3rd grade, but we do expect all students to be reading at home.

7.  Students have starting applying the writing process to a selecting piece.  Thus far we have focused on drafting and editing/revising.  This will be our focus for the next few weeks until all students are comfortable with the process working towards publications.

Just a reminder that there is a 3 hour early out this Wednesday.  I will also be sending book orders home tomorrow that will be due this Friday.  Remember to make checks out to Kim Kerian and NOT the book company as I order them online so they arrive quicker.

Heads up that conferences are coming up.  They are scheduled for Monday, February 11th, and Tuesday, February 12th.  These will be student led conferences so I am asking that your child come with you to the conference.  Starting in the next couple weeks, we will be preparing for conferences in school so that your child can explain how he/she is performing in school.

If your child has not returned his/her report card envelope yet, please remind them to do so as soon as possible.

Stay warm!

Welcome Back!

Welcome back and happy new year!  I can't believe it is January already!  I hope everyone enjoyed their extended vacation, with a few extra snow days in there.  The first half of the year went so fast.  I expect the same for the second so hold on for a busy semester.

Many students are wondering when we will have our "Care and Share" celebration that was scheduled before break.  We are rescheduling it!  Yippee!  I hope everyone has planned and prepared to make their ornament as we had planned.  Just remember that the ornament can be anything, an animal, a flower, the sun, an insect.....anything.  It does not have to be Christmas related, especially now that Christmas is over.  The "Care and Share" celebration is now rescheduled for Wednesday, January 9th.  Please have any materials needed for the ornament either by Tuesday or Wednesday.  We will exchange ornaments on Friday, January 11th, but will created them on the 9th.  Please see that your 3B student is ready with his/her materials.  Also, if you were a parent that volunteered to donate snacks for the celebration, please send those snacks with your child on Wednesday.  Thanks so much!  Thanks to those who have sent them already!

If your child has not returned his/her December reading calendar, I would like them to do it as soon as possible.  The January reading calendar was sent home before Christmas with a goal of 350 minutes.  Remember that everyone who meets their goal and returns their calendar every month gets to have a celebration with me at the end of April as well as a free pizza coupon each month of participation.  Keep reading!

Some students are bringing home a math test they did right before break.  It is on measurement.  There are a few students who still need to finish and will be bringing their test home tomorrow or Wednesday.  You do not need to return them but I would encourage you to go over the test with the students, as we ran out of time today due to having Guidance this afternoon.  Measuring to the nearest 1/4 of an inch was difficult for many, but it is not an expected "mastered" skill for third grade.  We will continue to review and work on that as well as adding and subtracting large numbers (still difficult for many).  Our next unit in math will be on multiplication.

I would also like to introduce a new face in our classroom.  Her name is Miss. Thorson and she will be a JTerm student in our room for the month of January.  The students were very excited to meet her this morning.  This is her first experience in the classroom and I know it will be a great one for her.  Expect a short note from her by the end of the week where she will introduce herself a little bit more to you, the parents.  She will be in the classroom Monday thru Thursday.

Have a great week!  Thanks for all the wonderful holiday gifts!!!  I missed the students a lot over break but was happy to receive so many emails from some of them and see many making videos on Animoto on their own.  There is nothing better when students work on project from their own passion!!!!!