Medcalf Minutes
April 11th - April 15th
Anderson Grove's Purpose and Direction
Purpose: The purpose of Anderson Grove Elementary is to prepare all students to achieve their greatest potential and to positively impact the future.
Values & Beliefs:
Family Atmosphere
Collaboration and Communication
Integrity
Continuous Improvement
3 Be’s – Be Safe, Be Respectful, Be Responsible
Be Known...
Anderson Grove is Known for Being a . . .
Collaborative
Dedicated
Positive
Community
Expectation of the Week: Restroom Behavior
Be Respectful
Flush the toilet
Stay in your stall
Wait your turn
Be Responsible
Wipe off counter and put towels in trash
Remember your purpose and leave no trace
Hands to yourself
Be Safe
Wash hands with soap and water
Social Skill of the Week: Accepting "No" for an Answer
- Look at the person.
- Say ‘Okay.’
- Stay calm.
- If you disagree, ask later.
A note from Mrs. Medcalf
NeSA
April 13th & 14th, third graders will begin their NeSA assessment over Math content. Our students did an amazing job of staying focused and taking their assessment seriously. Please applaud your child's efforts at home! A final day of NeSA will take place on April 28th.
Again, please help your child by making sure they have eaten a good breakfast each morning and have gotten plenty of sleep. Please encourage your child to do their best and really take their time reading and thinking about their responses.
A Note from Mrs. Billquist
Just like addition, there are several strategies that can be used when subtracting. Students may subtract in parts. If the subtraction problem was 95-59, it might look like this.
95-50=45
45-5-40
40-4=36
Another strategy students may use is counting on. If the problem was 91-66, it might look like this.
66+4=70
70+10=80
80+10=90
90+1=91
4+10+10+1= 25
Students may also count back. It works the same way as counting on, only they would start with 91 and subtract back until they reached 66. Students can also change numbers to make it easier to subtract, use a number line, or draw pictures. Ask what strategy works best for your child and let him or her show you how they find the answer.Upcoming Events
April 11- PTO- 6:30 in the library
April 13 - NeSA Math Day 1
April 14 - NeSA Math Day 2
April 18- No school for students
April 25- “Hit the Books” Storm Chasers Baseball Game- Werner Park- check ticket voucher for dates
Specials
Tuesday (Day 4) - Guidance and Library Checkout Day
Wednesday (Day 5) - PE
Thursday (Day 6) - Art
Friday (Day 7) - Music
A Peek at our Week
Reading – This week we explore the question “How can people communicate over long distances?” In the fantasy selection The Journey of Oliver K. Woodman, children will read about how Oliver travels across the country with the aid of friends he meets along the way. Students will also read the informational text Moving the U.S. Mail, which provides a historical overview of mail delivery in the United States. Target Vocabulary: sincere, conversations, managed, inspired, loaded, reunion, loveliest, currently, terror, pleasure.
At Home – Activities to Do Together
Vocabulary Discuss with your child how to behave with someone you’re meeting for the first time or haven’t seen for a long time. Try to incorporate this week’s Target Vocabulary words in your conversation.
Let Me Tell You Talk with your child about friends and family members who live far away. Discuss the different places they live and why they live there. Ask your child which of these places he or she would most like to visit.
All Aboard! Ask your child to imagine that he or she is going on a train trip with a friend. Have him or her write a short dialogue between you and your friend as you ride the train.
Writing – Writing Focus: Narrative Writing with Character Dialogue - This unit focuses on narrative writing. Students have developed a character to base their writing on. This week our focus will be to include correctly-punctuated dialogue to help express the characters thoughts and feelings.
At Home - Ask your child to tell a story "across their fingers" tapping one finger each of the following: Somebody (who was the main character), Wanted (what did the character want), But (what was the problem), So (how did the character solve the problem), Then (what was the resolution to the problem). In addition, what kind of dialogue will help your reader to better understand the plot of your narrative story?
Math – Mathematicians will begin their new unit How Many Hundreds? How Many Miles? Students will reviewing adding and subtracting strategies that were learned earlier in the year. However, this time they will be working with more 2- and 3-digit problems. We will also focus on adding and subtracting money in this unit.
At Home – Review addition and subtraction here:
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/fruitshoot/fruitshoot_subtraction.htm
http://www.coolmath4kids.com/subtraction/number-monster-subtraction-2n3digit.htm
http://www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/7-11-years/addition-and-subtraction
Science – Scientists will discuss different light sources, light rays, and how light can be reflected, refracted, or absorbed.
At Home – Check out these sites for more information about light:
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/light.html
http://www.ducksters.com/science/light.php
Spelling – Students will work with base words that end with suffixes, -ful, -ly, or -er. We will discuss the meaning of the suffixes as: -ful = "having" or "full of", -ly = "in a way that is", and -er = "a person who."
At Home – It is important that students practice sorting their words at home to understand the relationships of their words. Students can practice sorting activities at home as well as play games at http://www.spellingcity.com/BeckyMedcalf/ to have more practice with their words.
Thank you Families!