Classroom News
LeCroy & Spencer - April 11, 2013
Ms. Spencer's Last Day
Ms. Spencer's last day will be on April 24. We have all learned so much from her this year. Please join me in showing her how much we appreciate her dedication. I will be putting together a basket of items that she can use during her first year. Please feel free to send in items for the basket. Items may include staplers, staples, scissors, sticky notes, stickers, stationary paper, pens, pencils, erasers, white out, border paper, etc. Basically anything you can think of that a first year teacher might need would be perfect! Of course we want this to be a surprise, so please tell your students to give these items to me without her seeing. She is spending these last few days in other classrooms to gain different experiences during her final days at Sunset Park. If you plan to send in items, please do so by Monday, April 22. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about this.
Upcoming Events
Talent Show - April 23
Late Start - April 24
School-wide Math Fact Division Quiz - April 25 (STUDY, STUDY, STUDY!!!)
Spring Pictures Dress Down for $1 - April 25
Report Cards
Report Cards went home today. Please let me know if you have any concerns. Spring MAP scores were not recorded on there, because not all classes have finished MAP testing.
Testing
MAP testing will be finished on this Friday. Friday, we will take Language Usage. Reports will be coming home soon for you to view their progress in more detail.
PASS testing will be on Tuesday, May 7 through Thursday, May 9. Many parents have asked about these dates to make sure doctor/dentist appointments don't conflict. Please be sure to mark these dates. Students preform so much better in the environment they have been in all year long, as opposed to having to make the test up in another room. Remember, students will take Reading, Math, and Science OR Social Studies. In third grade, students only take Science OR Social Studies, not both. (They are selected randomly by the state and will not know which test they are taking until that morning.)
Science
We are finished with all of our units for the year. Students received information about the instrument project today. It is due on Friday of next week. We are also creating a tournament to review for PASS testing. Students are very excited about this. They have studied PASS-like questions and created criteria for writing their own. I have given students study guides to use in creating these questions for our tournament. When we are finished, we will hold a competition to see who knows the most about our science curriculum! Students should study these study guides to help them prepare for PASS. There are also EXTENSION pieces on the study guides. These pieces are EXTRA and above third grade curriculum. If students would like to earn a four on the report card, they can independently research these extension concepts. When students feel like they understand the extension pieces, they can come ask for an assessment. If students demonstrate proficiency on these above grade level concepts, they will receive a four on their report card for the fourth nine weeks.
Social Studies
We are nearing the end of our Social Studies units. This week, we have looked at the Great Depression and how it affected South Carolina. Next week, we will look at WWII and its affect on South Carolinians. We will soon study the Civil Rights Movement and more modern events such as tourism and its affect on SC.
Math
This week concludes our unit on money. Students have been planning a budget. They were given a monthly income and bills that have to be paid. After figuring the cost of needs, students have been given the opportunity to choose to purchase wants. These things include eating out, jewelry, entertainment, clothes, books, games, and purchasing other luxuries. Some students are realizing how hard it is to make choices based on a budget. Many students are realizing the importance of saving money instead of spending everything. The purpose of this is to give students opportunities to practice making change using the fewest number of coins. However, your children are learning a much more valuable lesson about being responsible with money. They are really enjoying themselves!
Language Arts
We are studying poetry in reading. Students are immersing themselves in poetry. This week, we have looked at stanzas (couplets, tercets, and quatrains), rhyme scheme, and repetition. We will continue to study poetry over the next few weeks.