Classroom
Notes – January 2018
Valentine's Day
Dance/Basket – Our very
popular St. Gregory's Valentine's Day dance and basket raffle is
quickly approaching. A note went home last week outlining the theme
of our basket and related items that you can donate. Our theme is
“Mommy Time” and you can send any contributions for our classroom
basket by February 02, 2018.
Money Assessment
– Our grade 3's completed a “show-me-what-you-know” on money
just before the Christmas break. Please sign and return the
assessment as soon as possible if you haven't done so already. Adding
and subtracting money amounts to $10 takes practice and it is
recommended that your child practices representing money amounts,
counting and adding/subtracting money using coins at home.
Outdoor Skating
– It seems that we are experiencing another unpredictable winter –
from cold to unusually warm – and these temperatures affect the
condition of the rink. I have scheduled our class skating time on
Friday's from 10:30 – 12:00. This day and time will depend on
weather conditions and I will notify you the day before if skating
will need to be cancelled for that day. I will send home a detailed
letter including skating rules and required equipment in the near
future. Since this upcoming Friday is a PD Day, we will attempt to
begin skating on Friday, February 2nd.
Thank you for your patience!
First Term Reports
– We are quickly nearing the end of the first reporting term. Just
a reminder that students will be given a letter grade for all six
learning skills and I will be specifically commenting on/providing
next steps for Organization and Initiative. Report cards will be sent
home on Friday, February 16th.
Please be advised that interviews will be on a “needs basis,”
therefore I will only be personally contacting those parents whom I
need to discuss their child's progress with.
Homework Routines
– Spelling homework will continue to be sent home on Monday's and
due on Friday's. Now that we are further into the school year, I will
begin alternating between Spelling and Math homework. All students
need to be reading at home each night. It is recommended that
students balance their personal choice of chapter/picture books with
Raz-Kids. For extra homework practice, students can access many apps
for computer/iPad through their student portal on our Board website:
www.ocsb.ca All grade 3's have
their email and passwords glued into the front page of their agenda.
Winter Clothing
– Just a reminder that it is recommended that all students keep
extra socks, mitts and toques in their backpack just in case their
clothing gets wet or lost during the school day. Please remember to
label all clothing to increase your chances of having lost items
returned to you.
PD Day
– There will be no school for students on Friday, January 26, 2018.
Always
Learning in Grade 3....
We have
completed our unit on Data Management in Math; however, we
will revisit important concepts for this strand in the Spring.
Currently, we are working on telling time to 5 minutes by reading and
writing both analogue and digital times. Also, students are learning
to read a thermometer and write temperatures degrees celsius. In
Measurement, we will be learning about measuring and
estimating length, width and height using centimetres, metres and
kilometres.
In
Writing, our grade 3's used their imagination to create a
short fictional story called “If I Lived in a Snow Globe.” I am
displaying their amazing stories on our classroom bulletin board. For
extra writing practice at home, students can write their own
narratives, or you could give your child a writing prompt for them
to write a paragraph about a topic/theme. Also, our class has been
very lucky to have a technology coach from our Board teaching
students to use Google Drive, Docs and Read & Write. Students can
write a narrative using these programs and they can demonstrate how
they are learning about and using technology in the classroom. In
Reading, we are continuing to read a variety of texts, using
reading strategies to improve comprehension. We are learning and
practising strategies to write effective short answer responses to
questions.
In
Science, we have been learning about strength and stability in
our unit on Structures. We have been discussing man-made and
natural structures. Also, we are learning about what makes a
structure strong and stable. Currently, students are creating a
structure using only straws and masking tape that needs to support a
load (i.e. a chapter book) without collapsing. Next, we will look at
how shape can add strength to a structure. In the near future, we
will have a guest (Mr. Ball) assist our class with a bridge building
experiment using wooden sticks.
In
Family Life, we are finishing up our discussions on “Our
Families” and focusing on “brothers and sisters. We will end this
theme by learning about “what is a friend” and how to be friendly
and open to one another.
In the
Arts, we are exploring Dance through a variety of
activities. Students are learning to use their body, energy, and
space to imitate movements in the natural environment. We are also
using a very engaging dance program (Groove EDGEucation) that
integrates a cultural context, as well as the importance of dance in
communities.
Thank
you for your continued support!
Mr.
Blais
