Last Post of 2010 !

Greetings!

The children and I had so much fun the last week of school. We studied a few holidays around the world- including the creation of a poinsettia and a holiday card based on our studies of England and Mexico! The children made a special gift for you- I hope you got a smile out of your "Melty" the Snowman. We had an enriching lesson shedding some "light" on the similarities of several holidays from Mrs. Patel (see below), and we celebrated with a holiday book exchange... not too long after being serenaded by Mr. Deptula and his 5th grade carolers! I know that the children work so hard every single day at school, so it was nice to ease things up a little bit and give the children some time to sing, create, and truly enjoy some hands-on, interactive learning at school!

Mr. D and his 5th grade carolers!

 I hope each and every one of you is enjoying a warm and happy winter break. Have lots of fun family time!! Thank you for all of the gifts, cards and treats that I received leading up to last Friday! It is a wonderful to feeling to receive all of the care and appreciation that you've shared with me! I am so happy to spend each day working with 23 amazing children- and their supportive families.

Here are a few “short and sweet” details for you!

Reading

Read lots of books over the holiday break! Keep that fluency and comprehension going 

strong!


Writing
We will begin our unit on Poetry in January! Also, the children will be preparing to take
their "Handwriting Test" before moving on to our cursive handwriting instruction. All letters
should be formed properly in print (in a nut shell: top-down, and letters mainly closed on
top!) before we will be ready to make the transition...

Math

Please, please, please, practice those addition facts over break! Subtraction is coming up!

Social Studies

We enjoyed watching the second half of the landmark challenge reports! It was apparent

that authentic learning happened as a result of these projects, the children were able

to speak comfortably about each of their topics. I have to say that I was especially 

pleased with the results of our Citizenship tests! While we did need to review the spelling 

of our President's name, the children truly became experts during this unit!

Sarah studied the Statue of Liberty, and made a clay replica!

Lucas documented his learning about the Golden Gate Bridge in a detailed poster!

Kristopher created a booklet that showed all of his learning about the Statue of Liberty!

Lexi shared her learning of Lady Liberty!

Audrey shared her expertise about the Statue of Liberty.

Hannah created a diorama of Mount Rushmore!

Holidays Around the World
While we weren't able to delve as deeply into our cultural studies with this unit as I had
hoped, we were able to touch on the winter traditions and customs that go along with Hanukkah, Christmas in Mexico, Christmas in England, and Christmas in Germany! We 
covered as much information as we could in the time that we had! Encourage your child to 
read through the fascinating customs and answer the questions about the traditions of 
the countries in the holiday packets that they brought home. There are also a few links 
here on the blog that they might want to explore a little bit further, too!  We will more 
fully cover our "Cultural Comparison" learning objective when we study the country of Australia in the spring.

Thanks to Mrs. Patel for enriching our cultural studies the day before break by preparing
 an engaging lesson for our class! It was a lesson called the "Universality of Light."  During this lesson, the children were broken into small groups and given a holiday to investigate, including: Hanukkah, Eid, Kwanzaa, Christmas, and Diwali. With their groups, the children looked through the books for examples of ways that the concept of light is incorporated. We found that light is a part of each and every one of these holidays, and it is something that we share with people across the cultures.  After sharing their findings, the children were given a glass votive holder to decorate and a votive candle, to remind them of their learning. It was a wonderful way to "enlighten" the children about holidays and cultures that are celebrated by people all around us.


Book Exchange:
The children were so excited to see what new book they had chosen during our book 
exchange! Thank you for participating!

Coming Soon:  THE LMC WILL BE "CLOSED" FROM 1/10 – 1/14 due to 
MAP testing!

January 3: Welcome back to school!

January 10: Reading MAP testing

January 13: Math MAP testing

Countdown to 2011!

This is a picture of the children after our class
election, wearing their "I VOTED!" buttons.

Can you believe our winter break is just around the corner? The time really seems to be flying by these days! Coming up this week is the third grade musical, our Winter Book Exchange, plus as much holiday excitement as we can squeeze in! The children will be enjoying some hands-on fun as we learning about customs around the world, too!

The children have been presenting their Landmark Challenge Projects the last few days! I can’t stress enough what a valuable learning experience this has been, and the children will remember it for a long time. The children who completed their projects are invited to have their lunch with me in the classroom on Tuesday. They will also receive a “no homework pass” for all of their hard work on these projects. They can use it for one night of absolutely no homework. Simply attach it to the reading log the night your child chooses to use it, so that I can tell it is being redeemed!

Aleksandra is now a Mount Rushmore expert!

Michael told us all the interesting details about Mount Rushmore!

Eric illustrated and labeled his own Golden Gate Bridge!

Nicolette studied the Statue of Liberty

Matthew researched the Liberty Bell

Noah visited Mount Rushmore!

Peter described The Alamo, complete with his Davy Crockett-style cap.

Jack presented Mount Rushmore.

Logan taught us about the Golden Gate Bridge.

Azan took us on a tour of the White House!

Christine learned all about Mount Rushmore.

Emily created her own miniature Mount Rushmore!

Alya designed a pamphlet about the Golden Gate Bridge.

Spelling

Next week we will focus on words with the /u/ sound, spelled u, u-e, ie, and ou.

Reading

We started off the week listening to a story to build our listening comprehension and oral vocabulary, called “Feathers in the Wind.” It was about a little girl named Mina who loved to gossip about everyone around her! A wise old woman taught her a valuable lesson when she asked Mina to cut open her feather pillow and bring it across town to her. Of course, the feathers blew all over town. The woman asked Mina to collect the feathers. Mina found that it was impossible to collect even a fraction of the feathers that escaped. We learned that our words can travel just like the feathers and they are impossible to get back, so we decided to think carefully before we speak.  New oral vocabulary words include: gossip, recall, regret, communicate, and opinion.

We then read a whole group story together called, “Head, Body, Legs.” It is a folktale from Liberia. In this story we found that the Head, Body, and Legs were not able to accomplish much without each the help of other. Together, however, they were very successful!  Through reading this story we were able to identify many examples of cause and effect.  We also practiced determining the meaning of unknown words using our context clues.  Our vocabulary words from this story as well as our guided reading texts were: attached, breathe, delicious, frantically, gasped, and swung.

Grammar

The children practiced action verbs and abbreviations during their grammar lessons this week! We played a few minutes of “charades” each morning- having the children guess each other’s actions (swimming, reading, smiling, laughing, skipping, etc.) to remind the children that verbs are things we do!

Writing

We have taken some time this week to review the "Think, Draw, Label, Write," structure of the writing program. The children have been starting off with a minute to simply think about the topic we are going to write about. Then, they are given a few minutes to sketch the images that come to mind as they think about their topic. From there, the children label their picture with as many words and descriptions as they can think of. Finally, they are ready to write. I have been modeling this process for the children as we become more familiar with it. Just as we are working to build the children’s reading fluency, we are also working to increase their writing fluency. The children are excited about this new method, and they are writing more than I have seen them write all year! They enjoy taking a minute to share their writing with a neighbor at the end of our writing time, and then with the class! Topics the children wrote about this week included: 1) How to build a snowman, 2) ways to stay warm in the winter and 3) writer’s choice! Their writing is so much fun to read!

The children are reading each other's writing,
writing down compliments on the large yellow post-it notes.

We also had our long awaited Writer's Celebration! The children were able to share their narrative writing with their classmates as we moved around the room reading each other's work. The children wrote down their thoughts about each other's work on large post-it notes that we attached to the stories. This not only encouraged the children to read each other's work carefully so they could come up with some thoughtful comments, but they were also excited to read what their classmates had to say about their work!

Coming up next: our unit on Poetry!

Math

We practiced using a tape measure to measure lengths and distances to the nearest inch and centimeter. The children practiced estimating this week. After much practice, I am pleased to see how comfortable they have become when deciding if they should round up (numbers ending in 5 or more) or round down (numbers ending in 4 or less).  We are also beginning our practice with the “Partial Sums” algorithm. Here’s a brief explanation: When adding two digit numbers, start in the TENS place, then adding the ONES place, and then combining the two together. (Ex:  46 + 27. Tens: 40+20=60, ones: 6+7 = 13,  combine: 60+13=73.) This strategy will take some getting used to, but I’m so pleased with the way the children are using this method already. We are encouraging the development of the “problem solving” mentality, as opposed to learning one method and focusing solely on it. The children will learn to “carry the one” but that method doesn’t build number sense in the same was as the Partial Sums algorithm. The children will have exposure to both methods.

We continue to practice our addition math facts!  Many of the children have successfully completed 100 problems in 5 minutes, and are now at 4, 3, and even 2 minutes! If your child is still working to complete their 100 problem test in a 5 minute time period, please spend a few minutes over the weekend or after school during the week reviewing their facts. We will be moving on to subtraction after the holiday break, and it will help them greatly if they already have their addition facts firmly in place. It will also help them during our daily math lessons, and prepare them for skills that are coming up, too!

Social Studies

The children learned so much during their unit on citizenship. After discovering the meaning behind the words of the Pledge of Allegiance, we learned about symbols that represent our country including the bald eagle, the Great Seal, Uncle Sam, the flag, the Statue of Liberty, and the Liberty Bell!  We also figured out what the colors of our flag stand for: red – bravery, white – goodness, and blue- liberty. 

In order to deepen our understanding of the voting process, we also had a mock election this week! A few students volunteered to help me develop 4 characters to run for the office of President of our class. These characters were “Fair Frank,” “Healthy Harry,” “Silly Sally,” and “Tough Tiffany.” Of course there were benefits to choosing each of these candidates. After listening to a speech that each of the candidates gave to their constituents, the children were asked to make a preliminary selection as to who they would choose for office. They made a campaign button that they wore all day at school, and they created a campaign poster for their candidate stating why they were the best person for the job. They hung their posters in the classroom for their classmates to view. Later that day, we had a debate. The children stood on one of the four sides of the classroom based on their candidate selection. They talked about why they thought their candidate was stronger than the others. They came up with some very thoughtful ideas! (Yes, Silly Sally offered McDonald’s in the lunchroom and video games during the day, but we would be very unhealthy and have to stay in school longer if we played all day!) The children were given the opportunity to switch candidates after listening to the ideas of their peers. (They had to share why they made the switch!) Finally, the children registered to vote by completing their Voter Registration cards, and they voted for Class President one at a time in our “makeshift” voting booth. We tallied up the votes together as a class and found that Fair Frank won the majority of the votes in the election. Fair Frank stated he would listen to the people, make sure everyone is treated equally, and would combine hard work with fun learning experiences. Great choice, class!

The children really enjoyed our 2^nd grade version of the voting process, and I think they gained a lot from the experience!

Book Exchange

Our book exchange is coming up on Friday afternoon. Remember to wrap up a book that your child has already enjoyed reading, and bring it to school. We will drop the wrapped books into a grab bag for a fun swap! It will be an exciting way to “grab” a new book to read over the long winter break!

Coming up:

This is our week to say the Pledge of Allegiance! Perfect timing!

Tuesday, December 14: 3rd grade musical, Landmark Luncheon (regular lunch routine, different location to eat it :)

Friday, December 17: Winter Book Exchange; Last day before break!

It's December!

December is here.. Complete with our first real snowfall of the school year! Please make sure to send your children with a pair of shoes to change into once they’ve arrived at school. (Gym shoes if its Monday or Thursday!!) It might also be helpful to keep a spare pair of socks and/or gloves in your child's backpack so the children are comfortable and warm during these upcoming cold days of winter.

Our miniature holiday around the world unit is coming up soon. As Hanukkah has already begun, we read several fun stories about the 'Festival of Lights' including The Chanukkah Guest and Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins by Eric Kimmel. They are such cute stories that incorporate some of the foundation of the holiday. We also started opening the windows of a Christmas Countdown calendar. The children will soon learn that this is a tradition we pull from Germany! (If you do NOT want your child to have the small piece of chocolate from the window on their day, please let me know! Since I hadn’t let you know until today, we have been sending them home in a little zip-loc bag). It will be fun connecting our learning about Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Christmas to the learning we’ve had several weeks back about the Eid holiday with Mrs. Patel. The children have already begun making comparisons!

Spelling

Being a review week in our reading series, we did not have a formal spelling list. The
children really enjoyed, however, choosing their own words! I was impressed with the
authentic high frequency words they found in their own writing that they decided they
wanted to practice. They also chose some interesting and challenging high interest words! 
I noticed that the children were very motivated to practice these words that they chose
for themselves. I can’t wait to grade the tests today and see how they did!

Next week we will focus on words with the long /e/ sound, spelled e, ee, ea, ey, and y.

Reading

This was our final week of Unit 2, and we took our Unit Assessment. The children participated in independent reading centers as well as their guided reading groups throughout the week. Next week starts Unit 3!

Math

The children worked on “start, change, end” story problems this week. They began by identifying the unit in the story problem. Then, they decided if it was a “change to less” problem, or a “change to more” (addition vs. subtraction.) The children analyzed the thermometer and discussed the differences they noticed between the Fahrenheit and
Celsius measurements.  We determined the appropriate temperatures for freezing – 32ºF, boiling -212ºF, internal body temperature – 98.6ºF, and a comfortable room temperature – 72ºF. (Feel free to review these with your children!) We reinforced the start, change,
end, concept looking at the changes in temperature on a variety of thermometers.

Social Studies

The children’s Landmark Challenge Projects are due on Tuesday. Feel free to bring them in tomorrow. It will be so much fun to watch the children share what they’ve learned about
these historical, symbolic structures in our country with their classmates!

The class carefully read the words of the Pledge of Allegiance this week. We broke it
down into simpler terms, so we would better understand it. The children learned that
every time we say it, we are making a promise to our country- as well as the people who
live in it- to be loyal. We are thankful to be living in a strong country based on freedom
and fairness.

After learning about our city and state government, the children learned about our country’s government this week! We now know that Congress, made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives, helps the President make laws for the country, and is a part of the Legislative Branch. We discovered that the President is the leader of our country, and that he is a part of the Executive Branch of government. Last the children learned that the Supreme Court is the highest court in the country and is a part of the Judicial Branch. We know that the Constitution is a set of laws that everyone in our country lives by, and these rules have been in existence for over 200 years! Ask the children to tell you the three branches of government (drawing a tree might help!) as well as the building in Washington that is associated with each one (US Capitol, White House, and Supreme Court!)

My class is so, so smart!! They amaze me with what theycan show me they've learned!

Holiday Book Exchange

Our next mini-unit will be a study of holidays around the world. As we prepare for our upcoming holiday season, I thought it would be fun for us to have a small gift exchange in our class! Have your child choose a book from home that they have already enjoyed reading.  Help them wrap it up and bring it to school on Friday, December 17^th! We will place all of these old favorites in a bag, and have the children “grab” a new one! 

Coming Soon:

December 13-17: It’s our week to say the Pledge of Allegiance!

December 14 : 3^rd Grade Musical

December 17: Holiday Book Exchange... and Winter Break begins at the end of the school day!