Third Grade News
Mrs. Behm, Mrs. Komar, & Mrs. Pilo
November 2, 2018
Community:
We continue to work with the Be Statements and also how important it is to be a bit more independent at school and at home. We are asking you to still monitor your child’s homework, etc., however, slowly putting just a bit more responsibility on them. Thanks for all that you do for your children! We appreciate all of your work.
Language Workshop:
In Language Workshop, we have been focusing on analyzing characters and unpacking the moves of writers and illustrators. We are discovering the creative ways that authors and illustrators weave in specific actions and feelings in the books to develop relationships in their stories. As we think deeply together, we are identifying several themes that are unfolding in our literature books and we also citing evidence from the text to support our thinking. It’s amazing how our students are able to connect the similarities as well as differences between the themes that are unfolding across various books!
Reading Workshop:
In Reader’s Workshop, we are presently focusing on word attack skills, which will help the readers through difficulty, including using known words and parts of words to help tackle challenging words. We are focusing on the following topics:
Strategies to decode tricky words
Strategies for figuring out the meaning of unfamiliar words and phrases
Strategies for monitoring for meaning and for thinking while reading
Ways to read and talk about books with partners or in groups
Writing Workshop:
This week our writing community celebrated our study of narrative writing. This was a special time set aside during Writer’s Workshop where we invited our classmates and teachers to sit alongside of us and listen to the stories that we have composed after studying many writers and illustrators. We learned a lot about the intentional writing moves that writers use as well as illustrators. But most importantly, we learned a lot about each other. This study has helped to develop a joyful writing culture that will propel our children to delve into the next study - persuasive writing.
Word Work:
An effective way to learn to spell a word is to use the “Look, say, name, cover, write, check” strategy.
Look at the word and get a picture of it in your head.
Say the word.
Name the letters in the word.
Cover the word.
Write the word as quickly as possible.
Check to see if the word is correct.
Math:
This week we wrapped up our addition and subtraction unit. Students should have found a favorite strategy or two that works best for them. They also learned how to estimate using rounding to check and see if their answer is reasonable. We ask, “Does it make sense?” They can be practicing for their assessment next week Wednesday, November 7th.
We started a new unit entitled “Groceries, stamps, and measuring strips” this week. We are learning multiplication strategies such as: skip counting, repeated addition, equal groups, and arrays. Students are working with small groups to explore these strategies through problem solving scenarios where we use multiplication in real life. Ask your son or daughter to tell you about what they’ve been learning!
Link to Unit 3 multiplication letter
Social Studies:
In Social Studies, the children will be learning about communities and citizenship. We will focus on the laws, rules, rights, and responsibilities that citizens have in a community. The students will also get to look at the excellent Waukesha website that will tell them about the different people who work and run our community, especially the mayor.
Second Step:
In our Second Step lessons, the children have been learning about feelings and working with conflicting feelings. We have been having great discussions about this topic and and working with strategies on how to work through conflicting feelings.
Parties:
Thank you to our amazing parent volunteers who made our Fall Parties fabulous!! We are so grateful for all that you do! The children had a wonderful time and loved the creative activities.
Happy Fall Day!
Mrs. Behm, Mrs. Komar, & Mrs. Pilo