This morning we had an assembly in honor of Veteran's Day. After that, we had abbreviated math classes. In my math class we reviewed creating function tables to help rename measurement units. We also went over last night's homework. We will have a quiz tomorrow. It will cover renaming units (conversions) and measuring length with a ruler.
After that, we had reading. We began by reading and discussing Avalanche, an article in our current National Geographic. Then I met with the LION reading group to finish sharing the selections they marked as important. For homework tonight, the LIONS group needs to answer the focus question that they wrote in their JGB packet.
The tigers group worked with Mrs. Hepner while I met with the lion's group.
Following PE and lunch we will pack up and head home.
So...there is not much homework tonight...study for the math quiz and the lion's group needs to answer their focus question. All other reading groups should read for 15-20 minutes.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Tuesday
Some reminders...our walking field trip is this Friday. We will be back at school in time for lunch. Tomorrow and Thursday are early release days. Students will be going home at 1:00.
In math we created function tables to help us rename measurements (conversions) in inches, feet and yards. Then the students worked in small groups to determine which length was longer; 42 inches, 4 ft or 3 ft. 10 inches. The groups also had to explain how they determined their answer. It was so cool to see the different methods used to arrive at the same answer. Two groups shared their efforts with the class today. The rest will share tomorrow. There is a centimeter worksheet for homework tonight. We will have a quiz on THURSDAY this week!
We began reading using a book called A Tour of Our Planets to identify the information we gained via text features. Then the students chose a scored personal narrative, from the first marking period, to publish in the computer lab using Microsoft Word. We will be attempting to publish our writing in the hopes of binding it into a book at the end of the year.
I do have to take a moment to brag here...the students have been practicing many word processing skills, in the computer lab, over the past few weeks...it has paid off!!! They did a GREAT...not FABULOUS job typing up their stories!!! It was so cool to witness!!!! YEY!
Following lunch and recess I will meet with reading groups while the students work on their current rough drafts and the reading graphic organizer from yesterday.
Bears: We will identify example of cause and effect in their current book. They should reread it tonight.
Tigers: We will identify example of cause and effect in their current book. They should reread it tonight.
Lions: We will continue our discussion from yesterday...we were sharing their reasons for why they marked certain actions as important. Then they will get a focus question to answer in preparation for another discussion later this week.
We will end the day with a review of economics and then we will use our observations from last Thursday and create a tally chart of the types of geographic characteristics in our community.
In math we created function tables to help us rename measurements (conversions) in inches, feet and yards. Then the students worked in small groups to determine which length was longer; 42 inches, 4 ft or 3 ft. 10 inches. The groups also had to explain how they determined their answer. It was so cool to see the different methods used to arrive at the same answer. Two groups shared their efforts with the class today. The rest will share tomorrow. There is a centimeter worksheet for homework tonight. We will have a quiz on THURSDAY this week!
We began reading using a book called A Tour of Our Planets to identify the information we gained via text features. Then the students chose a scored personal narrative, from the first marking period, to publish in the computer lab using Microsoft Word. We will be attempting to publish our writing in the hopes of binding it into a book at the end of the year.
I do have to take a moment to brag here...the students have been practicing many word processing skills, in the computer lab, over the past few weeks...it has paid off!!! They did a GREAT...not FABULOUS job typing up their stories!!! It was so cool to witness!!!! YEY!
Following lunch and recess I will meet with reading groups while the students work on their current rough drafts and the reading graphic organizer from yesterday.
Bears: We will identify example of cause and effect in their current book. They should reread it tonight.
Tigers: We will identify example of cause and effect in their current book. They should reread it tonight.
Lions: We will continue our discussion from yesterday...we were sharing their reasons for why they marked certain actions as important. Then they will get a focus question to answer in preparation for another discussion later this week.
We will end the day with a review of economics and then we will use our observations from last Thursday and create a tally chart of the types of geographic characteristics in our community.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Monday
I look forward to meeting with all of you this week at our parent conference. Keep in mind that students will be dismissed early on Wednesday and Thursday. Additionally, we have our walking field trip of Damascus on Friday.
In math we began calculating conversions between inches, yards and feet. The students are in need of more practice, so we will continue tomorrow. Tonight's homework is a centimeter measurement paper.
In reading we used text features to help us answer questions from Life in the Polar Regions. The students will also use the book to complete a graphic organizer as part of their independent work. We also began looking at the structure of a paragraph by comparing it to a hamburger. Students learned that every paragraph needs a topic and concluding sentence, as well as, detail sentences in between.
Following art, lunch and recess I will meet with reading groups while the students work on independent reading and writing activities.
Bears: We will read selected portions of the text and identify the main idea.
Tigers:We will finish reading Giraffes and identify the main idea in selected sections.
Lions: Students will reread Fisherman and his Wife and mark 3-4 places where they think a character does something important in the story. We will discuss these selections in group.
We will end the day with Mrs. Howard doing a lesson on Caring.
In math we began calculating conversions between inches, yards and feet. The students are in need of more practice, so we will continue tomorrow. Tonight's homework is a centimeter measurement paper.
In reading we used text features to help us answer questions from Life in the Polar Regions. The students will also use the book to complete a graphic organizer as part of their independent work. We also began looking at the structure of a paragraph by comparing it to a hamburger. Students learned that every paragraph needs a topic and concluding sentence, as well as, detail sentences in between.
Following art, lunch and recess I will meet with reading groups while the students work on independent reading and writing activities.
Bears: We will read selected portions of the text and identify the main idea.
Tigers:We will finish reading Giraffes and identify the main idea in selected sections.
Lions: Students will reread Fisherman and his Wife and mark 3-4 places where they think a character does something important in the story. We will discuss these selections in group.
We will end the day with Mrs. Howard doing a lesson on Caring.
Friday, November 6, 2009
TGIF
I hope all of your received the permission slip for our walking field trip of Damascus next Friday. If you have not already done so, please sign the permission slip and return it to school. We will need chaperones. If you would like to volunteer, simply make a not of it on the bottom of the slip.
In math we continued using rulers to measure length. Today we measure using centimeters. I also pulled a small group to continue working on three digit subtraction.
We began reading by using our background knowledge from Angela in the Arctic to better understand a new text, Life in the Polar Regions. After that, I modeled adding more detail, especially specific vocabulary, to our writing to inform graphic organizers.
Following media center, lunch and recess the students finished any unfinished work from the week and added details to their graphic organizers. I met with reading groups.
Bears: Reread specific sections of the text and identified the main idea.
Tigers: Read the first half of the text and discussed cause and effect within the text and compared and contrasted giraffes to humans.
Lions: Shared the questions they wrote in their RRJ. Then chose a "keeper" question to focus on while they reread the story on Monday.
Before celebrating Fun Friday, the students will review their geographic characteristics list from yesterday with a chart that was given to them on Wednesday to make sure that they put the characteristics on the correct side of their t-chart.
In math we continued using rulers to measure length. Today we measure using centimeters. I also pulled a small group to continue working on three digit subtraction.
We began reading by using our background knowledge from Angela in the Arctic to better understand a new text, Life in the Polar Regions. After that, I modeled adding more detail, especially specific vocabulary, to our writing to inform graphic organizers.
Following media center, lunch and recess the students finished any unfinished work from the week and added details to their graphic organizers. I met with reading groups.
Bears: Reread specific sections of the text and identified the main idea.
Tigers: Read the first half of the text and discussed cause and effect within the text and compared and contrasted giraffes to humans.
Lions: Shared the questions they wrote in their RRJ. Then chose a "keeper" question to focus on while they reread the story on Monday.
Before celebrating Fun Friday, the students will review their geographic characteristics list from yesterday with a chart that was given to them on Wednesday to make sure that they put the characteristics on the correct side of their t-chart.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Thursday
This morning, instead of math, we went to a weather assembly that was sponsored by Channel 7 and conducted by Adam Caskey. I thought it was cool and learned a lot!!! Ask your child about it!
In reading we read Angela from the Arctic and used our background knowledge to make connections and deepen our understanding of the text. Then I modeled making a graphic organizer for our informational writing piece which must be multi-paragraphed. I took my topic, running, and broke it down into smaller components such as, equipment, training and racing. Then I wrote details for each of the three sub-groups. For example, for equipment I wrote, GPS, Ipod, good shoes and clothing.
Following music, lunch and recess I will meet with reading groups while the children create their own graphic organizer and write a thank you not to the Rotary Club for he dictionaries they received yesterday.
Bears: We will share their words with suffixes and finish reading the book. If time permits, we will begin identifying the main idea in different sections of the book.
Tigers: We will review their lists of unknown words and begin reading the book.
Lions: We will do a first reading of The Fisherman and his Wife. Tonight they will reread it and list questions they are wondering about.
We will end the day by observing the geographic characteristics that we see out of the front window of our school.
In reading we read Angela from the Arctic and used our background knowledge to make connections and deepen our understanding of the text. Then I modeled making a graphic organizer for our informational writing piece which must be multi-paragraphed. I took my topic, running, and broke it down into smaller components such as, equipment, training and racing. Then I wrote details for each of the three sub-groups. For example, for equipment I wrote, GPS, Ipod, good shoes and clothing.
Following music, lunch and recess I will meet with reading groups while the children create their own graphic organizer and write a thank you not to the Rotary Club for he dictionaries they received yesterday.
Bears: We will share their words with suffixes and finish reading the book. If time permits, we will begin identifying the main idea in different sections of the book.
Tigers: We will review their lists of unknown words and begin reading the book.
Lions: We will do a first reading of The Fisherman and his Wife. Tonight they will reread it and list questions they are wondering about.
We will end the day by observing the geographic characteristics that we see out of the front window of our school.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Hump Day
This morning in math we practiced measuring to the nearest 1/2 inch. I also met with a small group to continue practicing 3 digit subtraction. There is a measurement worksheet for homework tonight. It will not be collected until Friday because we will not have math tomorrow due to a weather assembly.
In reading we read an article called Sea Slugs in our current National Geographic magazine. We used the following questions to guide us to the main idea of the article:
What is the overall topic?
What important details are included?
How are the details related ? ( I think this is the BIGGIE!)
What is the author trying to say?
After that, we discussed the importance of choosing interesting topics and using great ideas in our writing. WE also shared catchy topic sentences.
Following PE, lunch and recess the students will work on identifying nouns on a worksheet, adding topics to their informational writing topic list and reading about those topics, practicing the capital H, K, and X in cursive and any unfinished work, while I meet with small groups.
Bears: We will review their list of unknown words and read through their book. Tonight they will identify words will suffixes.
Tigers: We will wrap up Wednesday Surprise and practice vocabulary for their new book Giraffes. We will also discuss the function of various text features in this book. Tonight they will write three questions (for the reading group to answer) that can be answered using text features in their book.
Lions: We will begin our first Junior Great Books (JGB) story. We will do a text opener and a first reading in class. Tonight they will reread the story and list questions they are wondering about.
We will end the day with a visitor from the Lion's Club. They will be giving each third grade student a dictionary!
In reading we read an article called Sea Slugs in our current National Geographic magazine. We used the following questions to guide us to the main idea of the article:
What is the overall topic?
What important details are included?
How are the details related ? ( I think this is the BIGGIE!)
What is the author trying to say?
After that, we discussed the importance of choosing interesting topics and using great ideas in our writing. WE also shared catchy topic sentences.
Following PE, lunch and recess the students will work on identifying nouns on a worksheet, adding topics to their informational writing topic list and reading about those topics, practicing the capital H, K, and X in cursive and any unfinished work, while I meet with small groups.
Bears: We will review their list of unknown words and read through their book. Tonight they will identify words will suffixes.
Tigers: We will wrap up Wednesday Surprise and practice vocabulary for their new book Giraffes. We will also discuss the function of various text features in this book. Tonight they will write three questions (for the reading group to answer) that can be answered using text features in their book.
Lions: We will begin our first Junior Great Books (JGB) story. We will do a text opener and a first reading in class. Tonight they will reread the story and list questions they are wondering about.
We will end the day with a visitor from the Lion's Club. They will be giving each third grade student a dictionary!
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
First Day of Quarter 2
I want to thank Mrs. Petrolle and all of the parents who helped plan the fabulous Halloween party. I was truly sorry that I missed it but the children certainly had a great time!
Today is the beginning of the second marking period.
In math we began unit 2 which focuses on linear measurement, including conversions (such as, 12 inches = 1 foot) and area and perimeter. Today we spent a great deal of our time comparing different types of rulers. My goal was to help the students understand that some rulers begin at the edge while others have a definite starting point. I also wanted the children to notice that sometimes the metric side is measured in centimeters, while others use millimeters. For homework there is a subtraction worksheet. We were not ready for the measurement worksheet that I had planned to send home.
We began reading by identifying questions that will help guide us to identifying the main idea in text. Tomorrow we will use these questions to help us find the main idea in a National Geographic magazine article. After that we reviewed nouns. Then we discussed our new focus for writing this quarter...writing to inform. We talked about making a list of topics that each student knows a lot about.
This afternoon, while I meet with reading groups and Mrs. Hepner helps with writing, the children will develop personal topic lists for writing to inform. They will also identify nouns on a worksheet. Lastly, they will add words to their personal dictionary from our last word study unit.
Before going to lunch and recess, we visited the computer lab. The students practiced opening and printing a saved document, among the other skills we have been developing over the last few weeks.
This afternoon, I met with two out of three reading groups!
Bears: Practiced new vocabulary in their new book. Identified text features and their function within the book, too. Tonight they need to preview their new book and write any unknown words on the post-it note that is on the front cover.
Tigers: We finished reading The Wednesday Surprise. Tonight they need to read it to an adult, stopping at page 23 for the adult to make a prediction.
We will end the day by reviewing vocabulary that is specific to geography.
Oh...and today was picture day...if you forgot to send in money, no worries...you will get to see proofs and decide whether or not to order!
Today is the beginning of the second marking period.
In math we began unit 2 which focuses on linear measurement, including conversions (such as, 12 inches = 1 foot) and area and perimeter. Today we spent a great deal of our time comparing different types of rulers. My goal was to help the students understand that some rulers begin at the edge while others have a definite starting point. I also wanted the children to notice that sometimes the metric side is measured in centimeters, while others use millimeters. For homework there is a subtraction worksheet. We were not ready for the measurement worksheet that I had planned to send home.
We began reading by identifying questions that will help guide us to identifying the main idea in text. Tomorrow we will use these questions to help us find the main idea in a National Geographic magazine article. After that we reviewed nouns. Then we discussed our new focus for writing this quarter...writing to inform. We talked about making a list of topics that each student knows a lot about.
This afternoon, while I meet with reading groups and Mrs. Hepner helps with writing, the children will develop personal topic lists for writing to inform. They will also identify nouns on a worksheet. Lastly, they will add words to their personal dictionary from our last word study unit.
Before going to lunch and recess, we visited the computer lab. The students practiced opening and printing a saved document, among the other skills we have been developing over the last few weeks.
This afternoon, I met with two out of three reading groups!
Bears: Practiced new vocabulary in their new book. Identified text features and their function within the book, too. Tonight they need to preview their new book and write any unknown words on the post-it note that is on the front cover.
Tigers: We finished reading The Wednesday Surprise. Tonight they need to read it to an adult, stopping at page 23 for the adult to make a prediction.
We will end the day by reviewing vocabulary that is specific to geography.
Oh...and today was picture day...if you forgot to send in money, no worries...you will get to see proofs and decide whether or not to order!
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