3rd Grade Stars - December 2020
Mark Twain School
Goodbye 2020!
We are looking forward to an amazing 2021 with all of you. Happy Holidays & Happy New Year!
Love, Mrs. Bongiorno, Mrs. Jordan, and Ms. Oros
Wonderful Winter Break
Need some inspiration?? What did you do you eat? Who did you spend your time with? How were you being safe? What are some memories that you would like to remember? What shows did you watch? Don't forget to grab your Chromebook and take some pictures!
Mark Twain School Information
Office: 847.296.5341
Attendance: 847.296.5330
Website: www.emsd63.org/Page/13
Virtual Learning Schedule
8:15 am - Students login to Google Meet on Google Classroom
11:55 am - Students break for lunch
12:55 pm - Students return to Internet for afternoon work
2:25 pm - Students finished learning for the day
Important Information
Here are a few reminders for families about our routines and schedules on the virtual classroom:
- Please be on time for school. Students should be online by 8:15 am. Teachers will take attendance online when school starts. If your child is late they will be marked absent.
- If your child will not be online for any reason, please contact the Mark Twain office to report it. You do not need to email me.
- Students must be online all morning AND during the afternoon for learning. Please don't allow your child to logout at lunch and not return. There are independent assignments and LIVE teaching lessons with specials teachers in the afternoon.
Teacher Information
Mrs. Ann Bongiorno
Email: abongiorno@emsd63.org
Website: https://www.emsd63.org/Domain/288
Location: 9401 Hamlin Avenue, Niles, IL, USA
Phone: (847)296-5341
Mrs. Lori Jordan
Email: ljordan@emsd63.org
Website: https://www.emsd63.org/Domain/291
Location: 9401 Hamlin Ave, Niles, IL, USA
Phone: 847-296-5341
Twitter: @MrsJordan207
Ms. Emma Oros
Email: eoros@emsd63.org
Website: https://www.emsd63.org/Domain/403
Location: 9401 Hamlin Ave, Niles, IL, USA
Phone: 847-296-5341
Twitter: @emmaeducates
District 63 Remote Learning until January 2021
Please use the District 63 BOE Board docs website to login and listen to the Board Meeting for January. They will likely be making decisions regarding returning for hybrid instruction.
Please try these other links on the evening of the meeting to watch the meetings virtually.
Winter Break Begins after school on Friday 12/18
Classes begin remotely on 1/4/21
MLK Jr. Day - No School Monday 1/18/21
Feedback about online learning...
- Several students are not logging in for afternoon learning. Please check with your child after 12:55 each day to make sure they are working.
- Students have independent work to complete each afternoon on SeeSaw, Google Classroom or other apps. Please check in with your student occasionally to make sure they are completing all of their work. Some assignments will go in the gradebook.
- We check in with student computers in the afternoon on an app that allows us to see if the computer is on, in use, and what apps or meetings are open. We have noticed several student computers turned off all afternoon.
- Some students have meetings in the afternoon with other teachers. Please make sure your child is attending LIVE specials and scheduled meetings with support teachers.
What are we learning right now?
We are focusing on responsive word study this year in 3rd grade. We focus each week on a few key words for our Word Wall, and then move into activities that help us use words we know to spell other words. We are also practicing identifying words using context clues, and using the theme of a passage to help us figure out words when we are reading too! We are becoming Word Wizards! In the month of December we continued our study by focusing on root/base words, contractions, compound words, homophones, and words with illogical spellings. Try quizzing your student on some different contractions like can't or won't...ask what two words were squished together to make the contraction.
Math - We finished our Mid-Module test for Module 3 right before winter break. Students are halfway through this chapter. We are working on multiplying with the numbers 0, 1, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 in this unit. Please make sure your student is practicing their multiplication facts at home many times a week. The more familiar they are with the answers, the easier this chapter will be. The rest of the unit will focus on applying these calculation skills to 1 and 2 step word problems. We are also dabbling in algebra by trying out a letter variable for the unknown in an equation, and practicing using the distributive and associative properties when solving.
Science - For the last two weeks before winter break, students were asked to build a balloon rocket and a tower. They were using items they found at home and posting their finished projects on SeeSaw. When we return from winter break, students will immediately start a new science unit on extreme and hazardous weather. First, we will focus on weather and climate. We will learn the difference between them, and how meteorologists predict the weather. The unit will have daily assignments in the afternoon online that will be graded for participation and completion. The unit will last about 3 weeks, and then we will move on to part 2 of the unit...hazardous weather and how to stay safe!
What does a good home learning space look and sound like?
- Students should be sitting at a table or desk (please no laying in bed.)
- Free from distractions like loud TV, video games, siblings, and music.
- Chromebook on a table or desktop (not the floor or bed).
- Chair that helps your student sit up and see into the camera.
- No toys that can take attention away from learning or show up in the screen as a visitor.
- Headphones to minimize noise around the student if needed.
- Set (and keep) a schedule. Post it for your child if you can.
- School supplies for completing all assignments at the table.
Just a reminder...
- We can hear shows playing on the TV.
- We can hear the students arguing or wrestling with siblings.
- We can see video games or iPads being played during learning.
- We can see toys being played with during learning.
- I can hear lots of background noise in student recordings for classwork and independent work.