3rd Grade Newsletter
Third Grade Newsletter
Volume 7, Number 17 sadkins@pennoyerschool.org February 27, 2009
Hello Parents! We have had a pretty good week together. Miss Wierzgac spent some time on Tuesday afternoon talking to the kids about being respectful to each other, and they really seemed to listen! They had a fantastic day on Wednesday, and it is nice to see the kids making efforts to be kind to each other. We have established a “who praised you today?” chart at the front of the room for kids to acknowledge who has been kind to them. It is wonderful to see the chart full of names by the end of the day. I will not write a Newsletter next week as we have the ISAT testing. Please read the attached paper to find more details regarding this important week. We had a busy week, so here’s what’s been happening:
Reading ~ Our story this week was non-fiction and it was called Here’s My Dollar. It is a terrific story about a girl who made a difference to her local zoo simply by writing a letter. I was able to watch President Obama give his speech to Congress Tuesday night, and I was delighted to see a girl there with his wife who had written a letter to Congress, asking them for money to help her school. It is so nice to see something like that happen for everyone to see. I like that the kids can be exposed to the fact that one person really can make a difference in our world. We spent time discussing author’s purpose, and that you should understand the purpose before you read a book. We tend to read things differently for our different purposes, and that is important to understand. The three purposes authors write for are to inform, persuade, or entertain.
Language Arts ~ Our grammar lesson this week was on irregular past tense verbs. I gave the kids some extra practice with this yesterday during our reading groups. They each were to write a story using at least seven irregular past tense verbs. So many of these grammar lessons have to do with what makes sense in the sentence, and I will always encourage the kids to reread their sentences to look for sense. Our formal writing time has been spent finishing up with our persuasive papers. Many of the kids finished theirs up today, and hopefully the rest will catch up soon. Next week on the ISAT tests the kids will be expected to write a full, five paragraph paper on an expository topic. We will take some time before that test to practice writing one in a 45 minute time period.
Math ~ Congratulations to Shane and Justyna this week for successfully completing their timed multiplication test. They accurately answered 100 problems in 5 minutes. Way to go, Shane and Justyna! In other news, we have started two new chapters in Math. We have talked about fractional parts of a group, equivalent fractions, fractions greater than one and fractions as decimals. We did some fun activities with these concepts and they even got a treat! Ask them about their special candy they received and what they did with that candy! Also, ask your child about the artwork they created on Thursday that went along with their math lesson!
Science ~ On Monday, all the students played their energy review game to help prepare them for their test on Thursday. They all did a great job when they were answering the questions! They were pretty quick and both teams earned a lot of points! On Thursday then, the class took their test on energy. Please look for this test in your child’s papers they took home today. After ISAT week, we will begin a new chapter on Heat. If you would like, at home, you and your child could discuss heat and different forms of heat. This could get them excited and ready to learn about heat when we get back to our normal schedule.
Social Studies ~ This past week in social studies class we have read about Americans who have worked to make life better for others. Such individuals are Harriet Tubman, Thomas Jefferson, Helen Keller, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We recognized and discussed the risks some of them took to secure freedom for themselves and others. We also read about ordinary people who exemplified good citizenship, such as retired Fire Chief Joseph Curry (New York City) who organized rescue teams after the attack on New York City. Also, in the upcoming month, beginning March 9th in social studies class, your child will be introduced to many famous historical people. They will be introduced to these people through many written biographies. Your child will read 6 – 10 biographies in class about famous individuals. On March 20th, your child will be required to pick a historical figure and complete a biography report on him or her. This report will be due on March 30th. A detailed handout of instructions will be provided on Friday, March 20th. Following this lesson, your child will hold a WAX MUSEUM SPECIAL. Your child will dress up as their famous individual and display their costume and appear as a wax figure for you and the students of Pennoyer to view. This will take place on April 2nd and April 3rd.
Other Areas of Interest:
- There will be school on Monday, April 13! This is the day after Easter, and in the school calendar, this is scheduled as a day off. However, since we have had so many snow days, administration has decided to use April 13 as one of our make up days. They chose to do this because otherwise we will have to have school into the week of June 15, and we wanted to have the school year wrapped up by the end of the previous week. So please make note that school has been scheduled for Monday, April 13.
- Our regular reading/spelling/grammar program will be suspended next week due to the ISAT tests. There will be no homework given so that you child can go to be early and be well rested for the tests. Please read the attached ISAT information sheet for more details.
- The February Book-It form was due today. March is the final month for the Book-It program, and the kids are expected to read a total of 5 chapter books. The form went home today with your child.
That’s it for now! Thank goodness the weather is warming up again. I will be glad to put away my long, down coat for the season. Please remember to spend time every night reviewing multiplication flash cards with your child. If your child has already passed the test, this only needs to be done once a week or so. I wish you all a wonderful weekend, and remember to keep your child reading!
Mrs. Sarah Adkins
Miss Sarah Wierzgac
