Rock Walk!

What does it take to be a hero?

In preparation for our guided writing project this week, the students and I did a little digging on the topic of heroes. We watched a video on Terry Fox and then another video on one of my heroes, Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick from the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. After some discussion, I asked an important question...

What does it take to be a hero?

The students' responses gave me goosebumps!

loyal

kind

thankful & thoughtful

loving

brave

helpful

risk takers

do more good for others than for themselves

determined

smart problem solvers

never give up

courageous

trustworthy

For homework tonight, I would like students to talk to their parents to discuss who their hero is and why. Students will be expected to write a paragraph this week introducing us to their hero and supporting their choice with the reasons why they are a hero in their eyes.

Busy bees in grade three!

Last week was another great week in 3C!

New Projector!

We were all extremely excited to try out our new interactive whiteboard this week! Instead of having to run to my computer all of the time, I can just touch my whiteboard and have control! The students have fun exploring adding fractions using the pen feature! We will continue to explore different ways to use this new technology to enhance our learning experience.

Science

Mother Nature definitely didn't cooperate with us this week! Having to cancel our Rock Walk was very disappointing for the students. We made the best of it and had a great day setting up our chrome books and doing some handwriting. We have rescheduled the Rock Walk for this Wednesday (with three possible rain out dates- just in case) and ask that you please fill out the new permission slip online before Wednesday morning. Thank you for cooperation and patience with this process.

Social Studies

The students continued their exploration of mapping this week by learning about the compass rose, cardinal directions (N, S, E, W) and intercardinal directions (NE, NW, SE, SW).

Math

We finished up our mini confidence building unit on naming and adding fractions and then started into our patterning unit. The Jump Math program pays attention to building students' skills in small steps in preparation for the end goal. This week we worked on discovering the "gap" between two numbers in preparation for figuring out the pattern rule and extending an increasing pattern. All students were successful with the concepts this week!

Literacy

This week our read alouds have focused around reinforcing the comprehension strategies check for understanding and go back and reread. I am using Skippyjon Jones books to illustrate the importance of these strategies. Skippyjon Jones books are hilarious but there is a catch! You have to make sure you understand the expressions that are in Spanish to fully get all of the funny bits! I demonstate our strategies throughout the read aloud and clearly show the students the value of using these strategies. The reward for using the strategies is huge...more laughs!

I have continued to read with students during our read to self time each day. At this time, I teach specific reading strategies that I feel will benefit individual students the most. It is so wonderful working with a group of students who are so eager to add to their reading strategy toolboxes!

Art

This week in art, I introduced the students to one of my favourite artists, Romero Britto! We learned a few things about him personally and then starting looking at his art. The students quickly recognized a few key features present in his work:
- dark black lines outlining his drawings
- bold and bright colours
- patterns that go in every "piece" of his picture

After grasping an understanding of his works features, I guided the students through a cat drawing. Once the drawings were complete, we practiced making patterns with a variety of shapes and colours. Students were excited to try out their new skills on their cat drawings and got to work right away. We listened to Brazilian music while we worked since Romero Britto is from Brazil. We didn't get to finish our masterpieces and will continue to work on them this week.

Important Dates

Library - Tuesdays
Hot lunch orders - due Wednesday
Rock Walk- Wednesday
Terry Fox Walk - Friday

As always, if at any time you have any questions or concerns please contact me at your earliest convenience.

Day 8 Already!?!

Wow! Things are sure moving along in 3C! We may only be 8 days into grade three but we have been very busy!

Language Arts

We have been busy with:

1) daily read alouds that help me introduce a variety of reading strategies

- The Troll by Julia Donaldson taught us about tuning into interesting words when we read.

- Chowder & The Fabulous Bouncing Chowder by Peter Brown taught us to cross check when we are unsure of a word (Does it look right? Does it sound right? Does it make sense?) and to make connections when we are reading (text to self, text to text, text to world).

- Yellowstone, a nonfiction selection, taught us the difference between reading fiction and nonfiction. We were also able to practice three comprehension strategies while reading, checking for understanding, back up and reread and retell what you've read. 

2) poetry writing and parts of speech brainstorming

- Students wrote a poem using different nouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs to describe themselves. 

3) journal writing

4) back and forth communication

- Students will be writing to you each Friday and will bring home their back and forth duotang for you on Fridays. Please read your child's entry and write back. The students LOVE reading what you have to say. This week we are working on filling in some basic information about our school, class, rules and goals. You can expect the Back and Forth duotang to come home next Friday for the first time. 

Math

The students are very excited to start our new math program called Jump Math. I attended a workshop with three other teachers from RBES to learn about this program. We really liked what we saw and applied for a year of free resources. All four of us were successful and are trying the program out this year! For more information about Jump Math you can click on this link here:

http://jumpmath.org/ jump/en/approach

Students start out by completing a "Confidence Building Unit" working with fractions and the addition of fractions. The purpose of this mini-unit is to boost student confidence in their math abilities, not to delve into the deep and complicated world of fractions. Students in 3C were very proud of themselves as they worked through the questions!

Tomorrow we will begin our study of number patterns using the very much anticipated Jump Math workbooks! I'm sure your child will come home eager to tell you about them tomorrow!

Social Studies

We have started our introductory unit on mapping. Before we dive into the study of our four countries (Ukraine, Peru, Tunisia and India), we need to make sure we understand our place in the world. We will explore Canada, continents, oceans, directions and other geographical vocabulary. Last week we looked at the difference between a map and a globe. This week we are investigating the Compass Rose that can be found on every map. 

Science

This week we are starting our first unit on Rocks and Minerals. Going on our rock walk is the perfect way to start this unit. 

Please make sure that you have signed the permission slip online and please let me know if you are able to join us!

A few other important dates to remember:

Lunch orders due September 23rd

Milk delivery starts September 28th

Meet the teacher is on Thursday from 5pm-7pm

Rock walk is on Wednesday

Terry Fox Walk is on Friday, September 25th

What a fantastic start to the year!

Wow! What a fantastic three days!  I am so blessed to have such an amazing group of students to spend my days with!

On Monday, we got to know each other a bit, went over classroom rules and routines, made temporary name plates for our tables (our new desks are expected to arrive at the end of the month), read one of my favourite books (The Empty Pot by Demi) and enjoyed a presentation by Mary Lambert that focused on keeping a healthy body.

On Tuesday, we read My New Teacher by Al Yankovic, had fun trying to figure out each others' fib in Two Truths and a Fib, organized some of our supplies, discussed how to choose a "good fit book", chose 5 "good fit books" to put in our book bins, enjoyed 15 minutes of read to self, worked through two spelling tests (that I will mark this weekend to determine spelling groups) and worked on some basic addition facts.

On Wednesday, we read Chowder by Peter Brown, enjoyed 15 minutes of read to self, worked on a beautiful watercolour painting, wrote an I Am poem, wrote the I Am poem on top of our watercolour painting and explored a new math activity called How Many Ways (see below). It was such a fun day!

How Many Ways?

This is one of my favourite math activities to do! Students are asked to write equations that equal the target number. Today we worked on the number ten. 

The rules are:

1) you can only have one = in each equation

2) you can use addition, subtraction, multiplication or division

3) you need to be sure that you are right

4) you can use counters if needed

As time goes on, we will add a few more rules about how long you can follow a particular pattern before you need to switch things up.

The equations that are in this picture were generated together. Students were then given 15 minutes to come up with some more equations. I was blown away by the equations that they came up with! Some students had multiplication, addition and subtraction in one equation! Over time, everyone's confidence will grow with this activity and they will be excited to share their equations with the class.

Supplies

The students and I had a discussion surrounding how to handle supplies this year. With families being responsible for supplying their own supplies, I felt that things needed to be done a bit differently this year. The students decided that they want their own "art supplies" in their desk, instead of having communal bins. This includes their pencil crayons (24), their thick markers (10) and fine markers (12). To keep distractions at a minimum, I will keep scissors and glue in tubs to be used when needed. Unfortunately, we didn't have pencil boxes on our list of supplies. If you can purchase one or two pencil boxes this weekend and send them to school on Tuesday, that would be fantastic. I was at Staples the other day and they had nice pencil boxes for $2 right at the front of the store. The students and I fiddled around with a few of the pencil boxes that came in with students and all agreed that everything wouldn't fit in just one box. The idea that they came up with was to have one for pencil crayons and one for felts. 

Important Notes

The students came home with a bundle of office papers for you (stapled together) and one individual paper. Please go through these forms ASAP and return them to school on Tuesday. It is important for the office to update the students personal records. Once the FOIP forms have cleared the office, I can start posting pictures of students on our blog.

Fundraising

Students came home with SUTP books and order envelopes from our Parent Fundraising Committee. The cost is $20 per coupon book or app. Orders are due after the Thanksgiving weekend. If you are not interested, please return the book in the envelope to avoid being charged the $20. 

Water Bottles

Students are encouraged to bring a water bottle to school each day. Trips to the water fountain are very disruptive. I will be encouraging students to bring home bottles each day to be washed and refilled for the following day. 

Parent Homework

The students loved the fact that you received the first homework assignment of the year! Please complete the In A Million Words or Less sheet and return it to school by September 11th. 

I think that is all for now...I hope I haven't overloaded you with information!

My door is always open to our 3C families. If you have any questions or concerns at any time, please bring them to my attention at your earliest convenience.

Have a great long weekend!

Here are some pictures from our Art Gallery!