Important things firsts! Our lunch basket was hijacked! I am sure it was mistakenly carried to another classroom. I looked over the weekend, but was unable to locate it. However, I’ve no doubt that we will find it tomorrow. I apologize for 3 days worth of whatever was in their lunch boxes. I did my best to locate it before they left.
Thank you to everyone who has signed up for our Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day snack bar. We will spend the morning reading and learning about what our bodies need to be healthy, and then use those healthy bodies for fun events in the afternoon. If you are able to help out on Friday, please send me an email! 🙂
Remember, this is for 3rd grade students only. Students from other grade levels and younger children cannot attend.
Here’s a link to the info: https://msbinclass.com/2020/02/06/heart-healthy-valentines-sign-up/
Here’s a link to the sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0945adad22a5f94-heart
SBAC Preparation
We test a little bit earlier in the year this year. This means that I will not have as much time to get all the information your students need in their heads before we test. I understand that we all are incredibly busy and that sitting down with our homework and working through it takes time, but students need to complete homework, especially between now and March 13 (our tentative first test, the reading CAT).
You can also work with your students through practice tests here: https://wbte.drcedirect.com/NV/portals/nv/
Please note that it works best with Google Chrome.
Your Help
I need your help to make sure your students are ready for 4th grade. The end of 3rd grade is now in sight and it looms closer with every passing day. Thank you to all of you who read your student’s completed work, check Infinite Campus weekly to monitor student progress, and sign your student’s planner after you and your student have worked together to complete their homework. That signature lets me know that you know what we’re doing in class and how your student is performing.
Your students will tell you that I check digital and paper homework as a whole class. There are often times when I see a signature and your student claims to have done paper homework or digital homework and it simply isn’t done. This sends a message that a student’s parent condones a student providing me misinformation. It says it is okay for students to tell me that they did their homework when they haven’t. It reinforces that concept, and I get no buy in from your students.
I cannot do this without your help. I am working to make sure your students are successful and that we get the most out of every minute of instructional time. I’ve arranged to have students pulled by volunteer parents and instructional aids at the school to give them all the remediation they need to become more successful. We are a team. I know that this growing year asks a lot of you. But, when we all work together, we can move mountains.
Homework
Students need to complete paper reading homework through March 13. Starting next week, homework will consist of sample SBAC questions. Students can still work on ST Math or Prodigy for math, but I need them to do the paper homework for reading. Also, if they read a passage, they can count this as their nightly reading time. Homework should not take more than 40 minutes per night. I know that seems like a long time, but that is a maximum, not a minimum. Please make sure your student is reading something every night. I’m less concerned about content, and more concerned about reading. Let them read blogs, magazines, gaming reviews, comics, or books. Just encourage that reading!
Curriculum
This week, we will work on comparing fractions with like and different denominators. By week’s end, students will be able to recognize and generate simple equivalent fractions, e.g., 1/2 = 2/4, 4/6 = 2/3, and explain why the fractions are equivalent, by using a visual fraction model. My motto is “when in doubt, draw it out!” Please encourage your students to draw out the visual model when they compare fractions.
In reading, we are moving on into central message and theme. We backtracked a little with text structure to make sure everyone had a great foundation before moving on. Students should be able to recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text. In writing we will continue with constructed response questions and answers, and drafting expository textual pieces. I am also reinforcing our language standards throughout this writing process.
Upcoming Events
- 2/12 PTA Sweethearts Spaghetti Dinner
- 2/14 Heart Healthy Valentine’s Day
- 2/14 Free Dress Day if Wearing Red/Pink/Hearts
- 2/17 No School – President’s Day
- 2/24 – 2/28 Reading Week
- 2/28 Donuts with Dads
Ms. B. in Class 