Happy September! We’re off to a great start in Room 314! Our focus for August was routines, organization, and attitude. We did quite a bit of reading, viewing, singing, and talking about “Growth Mindset.” Please take a peek at some of what we’ve accomplished in August! Growth Mindset Students were introduced to the book Ish by Peter Reynolds. In the book, the main character likes to draw but when he is told that his drawings don’t look like his intended objects, he crumples up his work after each try and throws his works of art into a trashcan. Later, his sister comes to talk to him about why he’s not drawing anymore. When he confesses that his work is not any good, she takes him to her bedroom where he discovers that she has decorated her walls with his crumpled up “mistakes.” His sister leads him to understand that his works of art are like an “ish.” His painting of a vase looks “vase-ish.” This term is how we are referring to our first attempts at mastering new objectives or creating what we see in our mind’s eye. Our attempts might not be perfect at first, but with practice and effort, we will improve and reach our goal. To support all the budding artists and writers in our room, each student was given an “ish” journal where they can create and record their personal thoughts. These “ish” journals are very popular with the class. During our chapter book read aloud at the end of the day, students are invited to draw their mind movies. Students are eager to visualize, create, and annotate their thoughts. Research shows that our cognition and ability to learn is linked to what we believe about our ability--students have to believe in themselves to unlock their full potential. My goal this year is be an encourager and a promoter providing many diverse opportunities for personal and academic growth. I want all my students to achieve their goals and more importantly, leave third grade feeling confident with a positive self-worth. To go along with the growth mindset focus, our read alouds focused on the theme “Teamwork.” Everyone on a team has something to contribute. Sometimes a task just requires one dedicated individual while other times it takes a partner or group to achieve success. Pop’s Bridge by Eve Bunting, Frederick and Swimmy by Leo Lionni, The Great Fuzz Frenzy by Janet Stevens, and Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann were a few of our read alouds. This week we are moving on to the theme, “Believe in Yourself.” Read aloud books will focus on celebrating our uniqueness. In guided reading, we will be using the mentor text Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman to begin our connections unit. Grace is a perfect example of a talented individual who believes in herself and perseveres to achieve her goal. Organization We have all our journals/notebooks in order for organizing our learning this year. We’ve learned how to use each component and we’ve learned the reasoning behind each piece. Our reading journal is divided into two sections: “Mini-lessons” and “Reading Responses.” Our writing journal (also called our “seeds journal” for gathering ideas) is divided into “Author’s Craft” and “My Thinking.” We will add our writing process notebook when we begin our first project in the near future. We have a math journal to work problems and record our thinking for daily math warm-ups. We have a Reading Counts log for keeping a record of our reading and tests. We have a “ketchup” folder for work in progress and a daily take-home folder for assignments that need to be completed at home. Whew! Who says third grade isn’t busy! Brain Breaks Our morning schedule is ripe with learning opportunities. While we are fresh, we tackle two main content areas: math and reading. Between these two subjects, we make ourselves comfortable by taking a restroom and drink break followed by physical movement to get our blood pumping. The class enjoys dancing/exercising with Go Noodle.com or our growth mindset song “Try Everything” from this summer’s animated movie, Disney’s “Zootopia.” Lunch at 11:30 followed by recess sneaks up on us most days. Thank you to parents who send a water bottle with their student during this warm season. Students return from their mid-day recess hot and thirsty. We are trying to keep hydrated. Thank you, parents! Books We’ve Shared Our class is keeping a record of the books that we share on the carpet. We read content related books throughout the day as a way to build schema, initiate meaningful conversation, and imitate author’s craft. We use mentor texts for reading comprehension strategies, grammar, writing modes/author’s craft, social studies, and math. Reading builds our episodic memory, increases our vocabulary, stirs our imagination, and helps us articulate our thoughts with partners and in small group situations. I can’t begin to tell you the benefits of taking time to read orally. Last year my class read 161 books together not counting the books that were read in guided reading or independently. So many rich conversations! It is a joy for me to search for new books that build character, provoke thought, and add to our schema. Besides using these mentor texts across subject areas, we will always be reading a chapter book at the end of the day. Currently, we are reading an oldie but goodie--Henry Huggins by Beverly Cleary. Even though Henry is a boy from Washington state in the 1950’s, his desire to seek adventure, get along with his neighbors and classmates, and avoid embarrassing moments are much like any kid no matter the era. Sometimes it seems that trouble comes looking for Henry, but in the end, his problems get solved in a positive way that brings him an unexpected boon. Scholastic Book Orders Our first Scholastic Book Club orders are due this Friday, September 9. Please remember to put your child’s name on the order form and make checks out to Scholastic. I will complete the orders online this weekend. We should receive our books in just over a week from that date. If you prefer to order online, our class still benefits by receiving points that can be redeemed for new books for our classroom library. Our class code is L7BC2. Grandparent’s Day Grandparent’s Day is coming up on Tuesday, September 13 at 9:00 am. Grandparents will meet in the lobby before being escorted down to our room. We will visit with grandparents in the classroom for thirty minutes before adjourning to the cafeteria for cookies and punch. The entire event lasts about an hour. If your child’s grandparents are unable to attend, you may invite a family friend or neighbor to be an honored guest. We understand that some grandparents live out of state or aren’t physically able to attend. Students who do not have a special visitor will be paired up with another grandparent and classmate so he/she may receive that special attention. Mid-Quarter Progress Reports Mid-quarter progress reports will be coming home on Friday, September 16. These reports are a great way for you to initiate with your child a conversation about his/her work habits at school during independent work periods and the ability to follow instructions for work completion. Missing assignments or no name papers are usually the culprit for lower grades. One of the procedures we have in place to take responsibility for assignments is a check-off chart where students see the assignment due and then check off when they have turned in the paper. It is a great visual reminder. I also conduct private conversations with students who have missing work offering to answer any questions they have regarding that assignment and offer help for them to finalize completion. My motto on assignments: No student left behind. I reminded a student recently that making no effort is unacceptable. This community of learners doesn’t leave anyone behind and the work is not going to just “blow away.” Not even Mike Wazowski got to let his paperwork blow away in "Monster’s, Inc." His supervisor Roz made him do it. Same here. (Just give me a few more years and I’m probably going to look like her.) Oh, joy. Math Three cheers for Eureka math! Snap, snap, snap! Our class is having great success on daily lessons, quizzes, and our first assessment. I am impressed with our class’s math ability! We are math superstars! We are currently working on basic multiplication and division word problems using arrays, number bonds, and tape diagrams. I know that parents want to help. It would be beneficial for your child to begin practicing basic multiplication facts. You can do this a variety of ways: skip counting on paper, practicing with flashcards, or doing drills on the computer. Our class uses the website xtramath.org to practice basic math skills. We call this “flying our bugs.” Each student has a bug with his/her name on it. The goal is for each student to complete a three minute drill each day. The program begins with addition before moving through subtraction and multiplication. Students must achieve mastery before the computer moves them up a level. Students can practice at home. Another website that we will begin to use after we receive chromebook training this week is Moby Max. Moby Max is great for both English language arts and math practice. We will utilize Moby Max on the chromebooks during Liberator Time. I will be sending home a sheet in next week’s Monday folder with your student’s login/password and instructions for use at home for xtramath and Moby Max. Just an FYI: Reading Counts tests are not allowed to be taken at home. Your student has already been busy reading and taking tests on the computer here at school the past two weeks. Math Update: The BIS Leadership Committee met last week to discuss what math policies are to be implemented by all grade levels building wide. It was determined that teachers will send home math sprints (timed tests on math facts that we do with some of the lessons but not all), topic quizzes (these are the teacher-made quizzes after every three-four lessons), and assessments. Students who do not receive an 80% or higher on quizzes or assessments will be allowed to retake the quiz/test for a higher grade after receiving additional instruction. I will be pulling students who need additional help during Liberator Time. Students who receive Title I Math services will receive additional instruction from his/her Title I math teacher. Social Studies and Science The Leadership Team at BIS has determined that third grade will receive pass/fail grades for social studies and science. Since our schedule has shortened the social studies/science blocks, we will be implementing this content during reader’s workshop as well as the shortened period. The pass/fail marking alleviates the pressure of attaining grades and puts the focus on learning the content. You may still see a percentage and grade on some papers that your child completes. Those grades will go into SIS to help determine pass/fail. PBS Rewards Our class has earned two PBS rewards for respectful, responsible, and safe behavior in all school settings. We earned the letters B-I-S L-I-B-E-R-A-T-O-R-S-! from various teachers and administrators in the building. The class chose an indoor recess so they could see what was in the game closet along with stacking cups from coach’s closet. The second reward was dinner theater in the room. The Explorers are doing a wonderful job following school-wide expectations! Congrats! Upcoming Events September 7 Class STUCO elections September 16 Mid-quarter Progress Reports sent home September 13 Trenton’s Birthday September 13 Grandparent’s Day for 3rd Grade September 16 BHS Homecoming Parade at 2:40 September 22 Picture Day for Gold Team (that’s us) J THANK YOU, Parents!
Thank you for providing support for students to complete their nightly reading homework. The Pizza Hut Book It program will begin October 1. I will attach a free personal pan pizza coupon to completed September reading logs. Until then, I have added DoJo points for each student completing the August reading log.
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AuthorHello! My name is Heidi…I love my family, the Lord, and chai tea lattes! I’m a wife to an amazing husband, mama to four wonderful kids, new Grammy to a cute baby boy, and a chubby 3rd grade teacher. (I've eaten too many birthday cupcakes!) I love people, learning, and creating. Thanks for stopping by! May you be blessed today as you bless others. Archives
March 2020
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