3D News
January 2016
Poet of the Week & Guest Read Aloud Make Reading Fun!
3D is full of Star Students!
Grace
Connor
December was full of special birthdays! We helped our friends celebrate.
We are Mathematicians
We started Unit 3, Linear Measures & Area last week. So far, we practiced measuring line segments using U.S. Customary units. We learned how to use personal references to estimate the length of various classroom objects using inches, feet, and yards. We practiced measuring to the nearest whole inch, 1/2 inch, and 1/4 inch.
We also used personal references to estimate the length of classroom objects using centimeters, decimeters, and meters. We practiced measuring to the nearest centimeter, 1/2 centimeter, and millimeter.
Later this week:
- We will continue using what we know about measuring to help us determine the perimeter of various polygons.
Looking ahead:
- We will review what we know about multiplication to find the area of rectangles.
Multiplication Quiz: Friday, January 15th
Please continue to practice x4 and x8 facts every night. Since this Friday's quiz happens to fall on a Day 6 (with the other spelling, reading, & vocab tests), your child can choose to take the x4 or x8 facts quiz on Thursday if he or she would prefer.
We are Readers
This week's skill focuses on main idea & details. Good readers think about the main idea, or the important idea about a topic, as they read. Readers can use a graphic organizer to record details that support important ideas they read about in a text. This skill will help students summarize key concepts.
We learned you can find a main idea of a particular paragraph, chapter, or book. Sometimes the main idea can be found in the beginning of a paragraph, chapter or heading, or book title.
You will find the Journeys parent connection letter attached to the email.
The reading/vocabulary test will be Friday, January 15th.
Spelling
We are Writers
Throughout the first section of the Persuasive Writing Unit, your child will gather and support "brave and bold" opinions.
How do writers find ideas for persuasive essays, speeches, and letters?
We learned one strategy! They look at the world around them (their classroom, school, town), think about a problem that exist, and imagine a solution. This kind of reflection will help stir up feelings and emotions that are important to your child.
Here are some opinions the students shared over the past several days:
- Third graders in Mrs. Daniels class would love a class pet.
- Our classroom library should be kept neat and organized.
- You shouldn't litter.
- We should have a Friday cleanup to organize our desks.
- 3D students need more Geronimo Stilton books in our classroom library.
- Students in 3D can help fix books in the Book Hospital bin.
- Go Noodle breaks help third graders feel good throughout the day.
This week, we will continue to gather and write about many different ideas, hoping to fill up our notebooks with opinions that matter.
The picture below show students reading a speech to their peers.
We shared our published eBooks with Ms. Monte's class before Winter Break.
Radioactive Rick is the best! We loved the Mad Science Assembly!
We are Chemists!
After the assembly, we kicked off the unit by sharing all the things that came to mind when we thought about the word chemistry.
- chemical reactions
- potions
- Radioactive Rick
- dry ice and soap will cause a chemical reaction
- vinegar and baking soda will cause a chemical reaction
- flash paper will disappear in a fire
- gasoline is a flammable chemical
- there are three states of matter: solids, liquids, and gases
- be safe
We also shared our wonders:
- What are chemicals made of?
- What is the formula of some chemicals?
- Are all chemicals bad for you?
- Can they make you sick?
- Why do chemicals react?
- What are the first 10 elements on the periodic table?
We will be working with household chemicals (like baking soda, for example), which means we'll have to be safe. We came up with a list of rules to follow while we work in our laboratory. Here's what we think is important for scientists to remember:
- always wear your goggles
- do not eat or taste the chemicals
- clean up spills immediately
- listen to and follow directions carefully
Stay tuned to hear updates about our experiments!