This
will happen in small groups. The teacher will select appropriate books
for each group and help guide their reading by prompting effective reading
strategies. These groups will be very flexible and students will move to
various groups throughout the year as their needs change. Students will
do a variety of written activities which relate to the book they are reading.
All
students will be using the Reading Counts program on the computer this year. This
involves choosing a book at an appropriate reading level, reading it independently
and then taking a short quiz about the book on the computer. Students will
be earning points for each quiz that they pass. The school library has many
books that have corresponding quizzes in the Reading Counts system. Students
will be expected take at least one Reading Counts quiz each week.
Daily
Language Review and Word a Day Vocabulary
We
will be doing a Daily Language Review activity each afternoon. This
involves correcting grammar, punctuation and working on a variety of other
language skills. We will also be learning a new vocabulary word day.
This will be time period when we will also practice spelling words and handwriting.
We will be learning cursive handwriting this year after we review printing
skills.
Independent and
Self-selected Reading
There will be many opportunities
in the room for students to choose books at their interest level. We will
have times for silent reading daily. We will also begin each Friday morning
by participating in an all school silent reading time.
Journal
Writing
This
will be time where students are free to write about things of their choice.
Four Square Writing
Four
Square Writing will be the main component of our writing program. The Four
Square method will teach the students how to write effective paragraphs.
Spelling
A spelling packet will
come home each week as part of the homework expectations. We will have tests
on Fridays and the homework pack will also be due on Fridays. We will add
some of the words from our spelling packet to our classroom word wall each
week. These will usually be high frequency words, which students write often
and tend to be misspelled. We will be playing frequent games using words on
the word wall to reinforce spelling skills.
In
math this year your child will continue to develop their understanding of
number concepts. We will review
addition and subtraction fact strategies and then continue to work on developing
addition and subtraction fact fluency. Students will progress at their own
pace and be monitored by teachers, parent helpers, and the student’s family.
We will then move on to learning multiplication and division concepts
and fact strategies. Students will work at their own pace to master all the
multiplication facts. Other topics we will learn this year include:
reading, writing, and ordering numbers up to 10,000, working with money,
developing estimation skills, working with measurement in a variety of ways,
developing geometric concepts, and collecting data in many different ways.
There will also be a strong emphasis on problem solving skills this year.
As a class we will work on developing appropriate strategies for solving
a given problem. We will be doing
several problem solving activities each week.
Although
you will see math papers coming home, there are many activities going on at
school that you will not see: Class
graphs, math games, mental math problems, and problem solving in our math
journals. The math curriculum
we will use is Scott Foresman and supplemental Investigation units that incorporate
hands on learning activities. We will also be using the Teacher to Teacher
program for our problem solving activities.
Science, Health, and Social Studies
Science:
There are three science units provided by our school district that
we will study: Geology, Sound and measurement.
Health:
Our school district has provided us with a basic health curriculum
called The Great Body Shop. We
will use this classroom magazine to cover topics such as basic body systems,
ways to improve communication skills, making healthy choices for yourself,
and safety rules.
Social
Studies: We will be doing reading from our 3rd Grade social studies
textbook throughout the year. We will also be reading National Geographic
Magazine and Scholastic News for 3rd Grade.
Art
Art
will be integrated into the curriculum throughout the year. We will
also have monthly opportunities to explore art through our PTA’s Art Docent
program.
Scholastic News and National Geographic
For Kids
National Geographic for Kids is magazine for kids that will support our reading
and social studies curriculums. I would like to have our class subscribe to
this magazine this year. I am asking parents to contribute to cover the
cost of your child’s yearlong subscription to these magazines. I will
let you know what the cost is at our curriculum night next week. You may pay
cash or write a check to Meredith Hill. Besides being a source for reading
and discussion in class, your child will keep their copy of the magazine and
bring it home to share with you.
Homework & Take Home Folders
Homework
will be assigned weekly. A homework packet will come home every Monday
and is due on Fridays. Each afternoon students will write their homework assignments
in a daily planner. They will be using this type of planner through
the intermediate grades at Meredith Hill. You should expect
your child to spend approximately 30 minutes per night on homework this year,
15-20 minutes of reading per night and 10-15 minutes working on assignments
which may include math, spelling, and language arts papers. Please
look for your child’s planner in their backpack each night. It will be
a daily requirement for your student to make sure that a parent signs their
planner every night. You may also write notes back to me as I will be checking
planners each morning.
Your
child will choose one of the folders they brought to school this year to be
designated as their “Take Home Folder.” Any notes or special forms that
are returned to school should be placed in the Take Home Folder. Please check
your child’s Take Home Folder on a daily basis as important notices from the
school may come home throughout the week. Typically you will see your
child’s weekly school papers come home once to three times a week. Please
take the time to look through these papers as they will help keep you up to
date on what we are working on in class and how your child is progressing.
Classroom Expectations
Our
classroom rules are:
1.
Be safe.
2.
Follow directions.
3.
Do your best.
4.
Raise your
hand to speak.
5.
Listen to the
speaker.
Our school rewards positive behavior and
encourages responsibility in our students by allowing students to earn a Self
Manager badge. A Self Manager follows classroom and school rules.
After demonstrating good behavior for at least three weeks in a row, your
child will receive their Self Manager badge. In class we will create
a list of appropriate privileges for those students who become a Self Manager.
Students must continue to demonstrate the qualities of a Self Manager to keep
their badge. My hope is that each student in our class will become a
Self Manager this year.
If a student is not meeting the classroom
expectations I may keep him or her in for part of a recess to practice appropriate
behavior.
On
Fridays your student will be bringing home a weekly school report that will
communicate to you about his or her week at school. Your student will
be responsible for writing this report. It will include some of your
student's favorite activities from the week, their Reading Counts and spelling
test results as well as a letting you know if he or she had to stay in at
a recess time to practice appropriate behavior. Please look for this
each Friday afternoon. If we have a short week and did not have time
to write the reports I will send a note letting you know that there is no
report that week.
Specialist Schedules
* Monday & Wednesday: PE (Be sure your child dresses appropriately on
these days – e.g. comfortable shoes & clothing.)
*
Tuesday and Thursday: Music
Our library checkout
day will be on Mondays. Please help your student learn the responsibility
of bringing his or her own books back on time each week. Students will be
allowed to checkout two books every week as long as their previous books have
ben turned in.
Classroom Newsletters
I
will be updating our classroom news on our website each weekend. If
I know of someone that does not have internet access we will send home a printed
copy of that page. Please check our website often for updates!
Weekly
Classroom News
This link will take you to our weekly news. It will be updated on Fridays.
Arrival & Departure Times
School
starts at 9:20 and ends at 3:50. Students should not be left unattended
on school grounds before 9:10 each morning. In the morning students
will line up downstairs in the playshed and wait to be led into the building.
If you pick your child up at the end of the day, please make sure your child
knows exactly where you plan to pick them up. If you come into the school
building, you will need to check in at the office first. To help ensure the
safety of your child, please notify your child’s teachers and the school’s
office if there is ever any change in how your child is going home.
Conferences
Student
Led Conferences will be held on October 30th and 31st. Look for scheduling
information to come home in your child’s Take Home Folder in early October.
Report Cards
It
is important for you to be familiar with the expectations your child is required
to meet by the end of the school year. In your packet you received today
is a booklet that outlines the third grade learning expectations. Report
Cards will be coming home in January and June. This will be the first year
that students will be receiving letter grades on the report card. You will
find more information about what the letter grades mean with the report card.
Washington
State Grade Level Expectations This link will allow you to view
all of the grade level expectations for 3rd Grade
Help
Wanted
If
you are interested in volunteering in the classroom you are also welcome to
contact me at any time. We especially need parents who would like
to help by working with students one on one with reading fluency and math
fact practice as well as helping prepare classroom materials.
Throughout the year there may be notes sent home requesting help for
special events or activities as well.
End
of the Year DVD Slideshow
I will be creating an
end of the year slide show to celebrate our year together. If you take
any digital pictures of our class throughout the year please e mail them to
sscott@fwps.org and I may be able to include them on the DVD.
