Bubbles…Bubbles…Bubbles

Friday, February 14th, is not only Valentine's Day, but it is 3rd grader students day to have some fun with bubbles!  That's right!  Bubbles!  As part of a STEM grant awarded to students in 3-5th at Crestwood Elementary and Lime Springs-Chester Elementary, we will be spending almost the whole day having fun with bubbles.  Students will explore different types of bubble wands, sizes, shapes, and eventually use their findings to create their own bubble wand.   It is going to be a day full of learning and exploring while having fun at the same time.  Stay tuned for pictures and responses to come!

Valentines Day….Friday

With Valentine's Day fast approaching, I thought I had better make a quick comment as many students are asking.  Students in 3B are more than welcome to bring Valentines, but it is not required.  The only stipulation is that if they do bring Valentines, they have to bring them for the whole class.  Thus, I will be sending a class list home today so students have a complete list to go off of.

We will not be making Valentine's Day boxes so students can make those at home if they would like or simply bring a bag to take their Valentines home.  Again, it is totally optional and not required.

For those that bring Valentines, we will be have a small celebration and time to exchange them on Friday, February 14th.

Any questions, feel free to contact me.

Who Will Keep their Quiet Critter?

So let's be honest…..It is very hard to stay in a routine when that routine is constantly broken up by the weather we have been having.  It is then, not a surprise, that 3B has been having some "chatty" problems lately.  Understandable.  But it is important to remember to be respectful and responsible as well.  So here come the Quiet Critters.

While I am not one who manages my classroom in a way that it must be quiet all the time (so not true, interaction, discussions, collaborations, etc are so important and what I want in our classroom) there are a few times when students need to work at a quieter level.  This is where the Quiet Critters come in.  Let's see how many students can keep their Quiet Critter throughout the day and be able to know when to "turn it on and off"- meaning their volume and voice.

Parents, you will know how your child did with his/her Quiet Critter when their calendar comes home on Friday each week showing if they kept their Critter, what time of day they lost it-if they did, and how they did throughout the week.  Don't hesitate to ask your 3B student about it every day though….working together is more powerful than working alone.  As the students keep the Quiet Critter, they will continue to add various parts to it as well.  They are all very excited about it as we practiced last week with lots of successes!

Full Week Ahead????

I am sitting here watching the "Super Bowl", which has turned out "not too super", planning for the week ahead thinking, "Yes, we may finally have a full week if Mother Nature cooperates!" I was excited because we have so many great things to work on.  Then it hit me……Wednesday….early out for teacher inservice.  There goes that idea and excitement of a full week with the students.  Oh well…I will take what I can get.   Let's just hope Mother Nature is nice this week as I have heard various weather reports for this Tuesday. The groundhog did predict 2 more weeks of winter……yuck!

Book orders will be coming home today.  Remember that you may order them online using the online code written on the top of the book orders or you may send the orders with cash/check to school and I will order them as a class.  Just a reminder to make checks out to me, Kim Kerian, and NOT the book club.  Ordering online requires a credit card, which I use one of my own to do.  Please have any orders in by Friday, February 7th.  Thanks!

Parents should have received a bright pink letter from the office about signing up for parent-teacher conferences.  This letter was sent home last week.  If you did not get the letter, please let me know and I will send a new one with your child.  Remember to sign up for a conference time.  Your 3rd grade student needs to attend the conference with you as he/she will be leading the conference (as I mentioned in previous post). If anyone is having trouble with signing in to the conference scheduler, call the office and Linda will assist you.

Just a quick reminder to make sure students are dressed appropriately for this weather.  Many are coming without boots or snowpants.  Although we do not get outside much, due to cold weather, students need to be prepared for when we do.  I also suggest sending more then one pair of gloves or even socks, as sometimes they get wet at recess.

Stay warm this week!

Old Man Winter Must Not Be Happy!

I can honestly say that I feel like I have not seen much of my students since Christmas.  Although we

have had school here and there since the holidays, it does not feel like it. Next time we hear there is a big snowstorm coming our way,  I am going to plan on trying to still connect with the students virtually with the use of technology as I feel like we have lost so much time together!  Everyone loves a "snow day" once and a while, but this is getting out of control.  Someone needs to do something to cheer up Old Man Winter!  Any ideas?

Well, during the past "mini" weeks, 3B students have started a new exploratory called "Technology" class.  We do so much technology in the classroom that I hate saying it is a separate class.  The instructor of Tech, Miss Klenke,  is trying to correlate activities with the homerooms.  So far, 3B students have been shown an online keyboarding site they can go to to continue building their keyboarding skills, as well as starting book-trailers using the app iMovie.  This activity is in connection to reading done in the classroom.  Students will be using a book he/she has read in the classroom/home recently and created a movie trailer with required information about the book.  Our goal is to have the book trailers up and ready by the time of parent teacher conferences in February (if we ever have enough school).

I posting on my blog the link for students to work on keyboarding.  Miss Klenke has shown the students the site or will be showing it soon.  While we use the iPads primarily in the classroom, keyboarding quickly on a computer is still a part of our 3rd grade curriculum.  Through this online site, students can log in and work on keyboarding at home.  I will be sending student login and passwords home with the students so that they can continue to work independently.

I am unsure what tomorrow will bring, but I am hoping that I get to see the students' smiling faces.  Here are some bits of information about upcoming events and activities:
1.  Students will begin preparing for student led conferences.  These are conferences held in February where the 3rd grade students leads the conference.  While many students are very nervous leading up to the day of the conference, they are usually very happy afterwards.  More information will be coming home soon about logging in to sign up for conferences as well.  Stay tuned.
2.  We are wrapping up our unit on multiplication and introduction to division.  Please remind students to continue to work on multiplication facts.  There are some great websites on the side of my blog page that students can do at home to continue to work on recognizing their facts faster.
3.  We are working hard writing personal narratives.  Along with this genre, students are focusing on adding detail, writing good beginning sentences, and building their ideas better through their writing.  Students hope to have a personal narrative to share with everyone at conferences.
4.  Students are reading like crazy at school in preparation for their book-trailers being made with Tech class.  I love it!!!  I hope they are sharing that "want" to read at home as well.  Many students have been taking books home, reading, and building that love to read (that is what is most important).  Students were told to try and have their book read or almost done by the end of this week, but we may have to push that back a week due to weather and missing school.
5.  Our focus strategies in reading this week are to continue working on paraphrasing and questioning.  Paraphrasing is a tough strategy and will be the focus of "Cadet Time" as well for many groups.

Stay warm!

Welcome to 2014! Changes in the Future….

I hope that everyone enjoyed their extended vacation for winder break.  I know everyone says they would have liked to have another day off today, but I am glad to have the students back!  I missed them!  Hard to believe that the school year is already half over.  It always goes by so quickly!  I do not like winter, so I am hoping the next few months go very quickly!  Not too fast though as I need more time with my 3B stars!

Just a reminder to return your December Book-It calendar!  If your child has met his/her December reading goal, I will be sending home a coupon for a free personal pan pizza.  I am very impressed with the number of students in 3B participating in Book-It!  Yeah!!!  So proud of all of you!  The January calendar was sent home before break, with a goal of 350 minutes.  Get reading!

Starting the week of January 13th, 3B's schedule will be changing.  Before this, the students did not have a "special" on Wednesdays each week.  Beginning next week, 3B's special schedule will look like this:

Monday: Library

Tuesday: Art

Wednesday:  Technology (new!)

Thursday: Music

Friday: PE

We are adding a technology component to our schedules.  Miss Klinke, the tech coordinator, will be teaching this class.  She will be working with classroom teachers to integrate ideas and work on projects together.   She will also be showing the students various tech skills and activities they can be working on at home so stay tuned for more information. 

Report cards will be sent home Monday, January 13th.  Remember that you can always contact me via email or phone if you have any questions or concerns about report cards.

  

Stay warm!

Big Blast was a Big Hit!

The students had an awesome time at the Big Blast held before winter break!  From the looks of the pictures below, which are just a few that I took during the celebration, the students loved every minute of it!

Remember that the Big Blast is held as a celebration to our fundraising that is done in the fall.  The money raised from this fundraising project goes towards the district's field trips.  So a special thanks to everyone who purchased items this past fall and helped to put money in the school's piggy bank!

Wonderful Celebration of Caring and Sharing

I heard from my sub that the days spent creating ornaments and then sharing with classmates was a big hit!  The 3rd grade teachers said the students were very prepared, did really well, and created some beautiful ornaments from the items given.  Thank you to the parents who brought in snacks for the students to munch on while they worked.  From the looks of it, the students had plenty to eat as they created their "masterpieces".  I wish I could have been there to see them.

Here are a few pictures that the substitute took.

Important Information about Me….Mrs. Kerian

While it is a wonderful time with the holidays soon approaching, it is also a sad time for my family.

This morning, Sunday morning, I received a call that my grandmother had passed away.  She was my "only grandma" growing up and had a very special place in my heart.  Don't we all adore our grandmas?

Because of the need to be with family and attend the funeral/wake out of town, I will not be at school Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday.  I know this is not "good timing" but family comes first.  I promise the students, my 3B kiddos,  will be in good hands.  I have everything planned out for the substituted and know it will go smoothly.  (right 3B??)

If you need to get ahold of the school Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday, please call Linda in the office.  Do not email me as I will be out of town.  Linda will then forward the information to the substitute.

So this will be my last blog post before the holidays.  I want to take the time to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!  Enjoy your time with family and friends!  I will be missing my 3B students and can't wait to return and hear about what a wonderful break each and everyone had!

Thanks for a great first semester of school and happy holidays!

The Hour of Code!!!! Awesome Week of Coding!

Last week students in 3B participating in the Hour of Code.  This was a week of focusing on coding…..a job that will be a large part of the students' future!  Students and adults around the nation and world worked on coding through various means. We were among them!

We had a super, yet challenging time coding various apps and creating our own games through coding. It is wonderful as a teacher to see students problem solve and analyze information to code their way through a problem.  It involved a lot of critical thinking as well!  The students have blogged about their feelings about the Hour of Code so don't forget to check out their posts.  As usual, comments are always welcome. You will notice that many students say that it was fun yet hard at times!  

I happened to tweet out a picture of some students in 3B working their way through some coding apps. To our surprise, mainly mine, the famous singer Shakira "liked" our class tweet!!!!  That was so cool!!!! I think I was most excited!!

Here is a video I used to kick of "The Hour of Code".  you will notice Shakira, as well as many other famous singers, actors, and athletes encouraging students and adults to code.  Will you give it a try???