Marvelous Monday - Beginning of Parent Conferences

Today and tomorrow are early release days.  The students will be dismissed at 12:35.  Teachers will be holding parent conferences in the afternoon on both days.  I truly look forward to speaking with all of you about your child's progress in third grade thus far.  :-).

After reading quietly or practicing keyboarding skills we began our math rotations.  This week we will focus on memorizing the 8s basic facts and continue drawing pictures and writing equations, using a variable to represent the unknown, to solve word problems.

Today, during the small group teacher led instruction, we added the 8s facts to our multiplication table.  Then we identified patterns that we noticed, including that the 8s facts are the doubles of the 4s.  Additionally, some groups practiced using the 2s facts to solve problems involving the 8s by doubling them twice.

During math with a partner the students played a board game called Crazy 8s to help memorize the 8s facts.

Finally, during the technology rotation, the students revisited Times Table Grid and practiced the 8s facts.

Math homework, tonight, is on Google Classroom (homework page).

After math, the students ate lunch.  When they returned to the room, we began our literacy block.

First, I modeled using the organizer and storyboard, from Friday, to write a narrative poem.  Then I reviewed today's tasks.

First, the students will draft a narrative poem, using their organizer and storyboard, in their WRITING JOURNAL.  Net, they will read a simile poem and practice writing similes on the back of the poem.  Finally, they will read poems, with a partner, out loud, working on fluency and comprehension.

While the students worked independently, I met with guided reading groups.

Tigers:  We reviewed the -ai pattern.  Then we whisper read the poem, The First Thanksgiving" and identified the beginning, middle and end.  Finally, we reviewed our list of themes and decided the theme for this poem might be friendship.  For HOMEWORK the students need to read this poem, out loud, twice.

Leopards:  First I collected their, "Honey, I Love," books.  Then I handed out a poem called, "Since Hannah Moved Away".  Students read over it independently and then we shared some personal connections.  After that we reread the poem and discussed the comparisons.  We also reviewed the list of possible themes and identified friendship as the theme of the poem.  For HOMEWORK the students need to reread the poem, twice, out loud.

Lions:  The students received a new poem, Since Hannah Moved Away."  They read it over and we shared some personal connections.  After that, I reread it and the students identified examples of similes in the poem.  Then we discussed the theme of the poem, friendship.  For HOMEWORK the students will read the poem, twice, out loud.

Students in the panthers group received some writing support, so i didn't meet with their reading group.  They should read for 10 minutes this evening, though.

The entire class, for HOMEWORK, should read their narrative poem rough draft (in their writing journal) out loud to an adult.