Week of 3/6/2017

Ahoy!

Welcome to another week in 3rd grade! After a crazy week last week, we are settling back into our rhythm! Here is what we are doing this week...

Reading:
This week we are starting a new text titled Deep Down and other Extreme Places to Live. The kids are very interested in this text. While we are reading our focus is to find the main idea (what it is mostly about) of each section, and to use text features to help us comprehend the text.

Also, as a class we are focusing on increasing our reading fluency; our ability to read accurately with expression. Once a week you will see your students fluency passage from the last week come home. The bottom of the page shows the increase in words read in one minute each day of the week. In order to support your child's fluency at home you can take those passages and practice reading fluently each day of the week. Record how far your child made it each day in one minute. After 5 days send it back and I will give your child $15 Blairwin bucks for the extra practice. 

Math:
This week our focus is on telling time and measurement. We will be exploring the U.S. Customary system and Metric system of measurement. We are focusing on length, mass, and volume. Please be practicing multiplication fact fluency at home with your child. If you need flash cards please email me! It is very important that our students are becoming fluent with their multiplication facts through x10.

Writing:
The focus this week is on the 3 different types of informational writing; procedural, report, and explanatory. By the end of the month our students will begin writing a large explanatory piece. Until then there will be many chances for them to practice!

Spelling: Test on Friday.
paper
place
near
now
something
hard
because
sentence
what
don't
through
until
think
better
without
your
their
were

Homework Journal: It is a great feeling to be able to help someone in need. Would you rather help at a homeless shelter or a hospital? Explain.

Mystery Questions:
1) Who was St. Patrick and when was he born?
2) What is the official flower of Ireland?
3) What is the symbol of Ireland?
4) In Dublin, Ireland what days do they celebrate the St. Patrick's Day Festival?
5) How many people in America are part Irish?
6) Where in the U.S. is a river temporarily dyed green in honor of St. Patrick's Day?

Dates to Remember:
3/10- Last day for Jump Rope For Heart
3/14- PALS meeting
3/27-3/31- Jungle Week

Thanks,
Miss Irwin

Week of 2/27/2017

Wow, I can't believe tomorrow is MARCH! Where did the last two months go? We have been working very hard here at school and are really starting to see the fruits of our labor! Here is what we are doing...

Reading: This week we are starting a new module titled "Cultures, Communities, and Connections." We started this by reading an information piece on city living. It was great to see our students so excited to learn about how people live in different cities. This module will take us about a month to complete. Along with our regular reading we are also celebrating Dr. Seuss this week! Go ahead and pull out your favorite Dr. Seuss book to read!

Writing: The students are writing a fictional piece this week based off of what would happen if the Cat in the Hat walked into our classroom when the teachers were not there. It has been great seeing the students creativity come out in these pieces. I can't wait to see the finished products on Friday!

Math: This week we looked at our last unit and saw our growth from pre-assessment to post-assessment. It was great to see the students proud of their learning! We are also beginning a new unit this week. We will be learning about measurement, elapsed time, and fractions for the next few weeks! I am very excited for this unit, but it can often be difficult for students. If you child is stuck on their homework please email me. I will help you in any way that I can.

Science: We are coming to the end of our Weather and Beyond science unit. We will finish up learning about the different climates in the world. Our cumulation will be a neat science project where the students will be asked to build roofs that survive different climates and weather patterns.

Spelling:
White
House
year
they
there
important
people
began
together
soon
again
through
ever
since
been
write
above
story

Homework Journal:
Think of a Dr. Seuss book that has been made into a cartoon or movie. Which version do you like better, the book or the cartoon/movie. Why?

Mystery Questions:
1) When was Dr. Seuss born? When did he die?
2) Where did Dr. Seuss go to college and what did he originally want to do as a career?
3) Did Dr. Seuss have any children?
4) How many languages have Dr. Seuss' books been translated into?
5) What was Dr. Seuss' first book?
6) Was Dr. Seuss really a doctor?

Dates to Remember:
3/1- Character Ed Assembly
3/2- Read Across America (Students can bring either a blanket, pillow, or stuffed animal.)
3/3- Super Hero Day
3/3- Class visit from Dr. Brester teaching on oral hygiene
3/3- Dr. Seuss/Super Hero Dance @ 6:00 pm

Hope you all have a great week!
Miss Irwin

Week of 2/20/2017

Ahoy!

I hope you all had a great long weekend! Here is what is going on in 3rd grade!

Reading: This week our focus is on finding the main idea of an informational article. Today we learned about how chicken nuggets are read. When finding the main idea it helps to think of who, what, when, where, and why. Once you can decide which of those are important you can usually find out the main idea. For example, today we decided that the what, who, and why were important and came up with the idea that the main idea for our article was: How McDonald's chicken nuggets are made.

Writing: The Athabascan writing pieces have been graded and will be given back to students this week. The main focus for this week is convention and quotation marks. Students will be finishing up a performance task as well this week.

Math: This is our last week of Unit 3. We have been learning the standard algorithm for addition and subtraction the last few days. We will be taking a unit assessment on Thursday and Friday of this week.

Spelling: (Test Friday)
study
picture
night
house
being
almost
around
light
new
Earth
off
first
don't
second
there
world
people
without

Homework Journal Prompt:
Music was first played on records. Then it was played on tapes, CDs, and now as digital music. Write about how you think music will be played in the future.

Mystery Questions:
1) What's the driest continent on the Earth?
2) What's the highest amount of rainfall ever recorded in 24 hours on Earth?
3) What's the record for yearly rainfall in Camas, WA?
4) What is the most consecutive days of rain recorded in Portland, OR?
5) What is the maximum speed of a falling raindrop?

Events to Remember:
2/27-3/3 Dr. Suess Week
3/1- Character Ed Assembly
3/3- Super Hero Spirit Day
3/3- Visit from Dr. Brester, local dentist.

Thanks again for all you do to help your child succeed!
Miss Irwin

Week of 2/13/2017

Ahoy! This week is ART WEEK at Lacamas. We started Monday with a group of high school students teaching our whole school an art lesson. On Wednesday there was an amazing shadow puppet performance, and on Friday we will cap the entire thing off with the high schoolers helping us to finish our school wide art project! Between art week and Valentine's day it has been a very busy week so far!

Math: We are starting to wrap up unit 3! This week and the beginning of next week we will be looking at the last few ends of multi-digit addition and subtraction. I am impressed with how well the students are learning to use the strategies being taught to add and subtract. Story problems will be our focus for the next few days.

Reading: We are finishing up our unit on Alaska and the native Athabaskan people. The end of this week our students will be doing a performance based assessment where they are responding to a prompt about what we have been reading. I am looking forward to seeing the growth that our students are making.

Writing: The last day for our writing piece was on Tuesday. The rest of this week will be spend working on our performance based assessment. A new piece will begin next week!

Science: Today we discussed the four major components of weather: temperature, wind speed, cloud cover, and precipitation. We learned about why the North and South Poles are cold and learned that the South Pole is the coldest! Ask your student to explain to you why the South Pole is cold!

Spelling:
there
their
know
write
too
place
while
next
something
together
food
once
mother
light
country
father
let

Mystery Questions:
1) How many Valentine's Day cards are exchanged each year in the U.S.?
2) Which state produces 60 percent of American roses grown in the U.S.?
3) Which card company has 1330 different cards specifically for Valentine's Day?
4) What percentage of women American send themselves flowers on Valentine's Day?
5) What is the meaning of Valentine's Day?

Hope you are all having a great week!
Miss Irwin

Week of 2/6/2017

Ahoy!

Goodness, this week is flying by! As much as I love snow, I was very pleased that we did not have another snow day! It is great having this full weeks with our students. We have been getting a lot of learning in! Here is what is going on this week!

Reading: This week we finished reading The Year of Miss Agnes. It was a wonderful book that tied in so well with what we are learning in science and writing. We are now focusing on looking at the main idea and main message of different texts. When you are reading with your students have them work on coming up with the central or main message of a fictional text, or the main idea of a non-fiction text.

Writing: This week we are working on editing our writing pieces. The students have been peer editing and are now going to start revising their pieces. Thank you for your support at home working on finishing up these pieces.

Math: This week we are working on multi-digit subtraction. We are also transitioning into thinking about multi-step word problems and how to organize our problem solving when it comes to multiple steps. Please keep working on your students multiplication facts! We will start multiplication quizzes in a few weeks!

Science: This week we continued learning about the water cycle!

IF YOUR CHILD MEMORIZES THIS SONG BY TOMORROW 2/9 THEY CAN EARN $40. Water Cycle Song:(to the tune of "She'll be coming 'round the mountain)Water travels in a cycle yes it does,Water travels in a cycle yes it does,It goes up as evaporationForms clouds as condensationAnd comes down as precipitationYes it does!

Spelling:
they
there
your
could
than
again
something
through
don't
want
school
important
once
enough
need
far
hand
high
year

Mystery Questions:
Why is the color red the symbol of Valentine's Day?
Where does chocolate come from?
Who receive the most Valentine's Day cards in the US.
How many Valentine's Day cards are sent worldwide every year?
Who made the first box of chocolates made for Valentine's Day?

Events to Remember:
2/9-2/18 Book Fair
2/10- Movie Night @ 6:00.
2/13-2/17 Lacamas Art Week
2/14- "Sweets with your Sweetie" @8:00

Thanks for all you do!
Miss Irwin

Week of 1/30/2017

Ahoy!
I hope this week is treating you all well. We are off to a great start in our classroom. This is a very busy time of year for third graders. We have a lot of learning to do and a lot of fun to be had. Here is what we are working on this week.

Reading: We are continuing to read The Year of Miss Agnes. The students seem to really be enjoying it. With this text we are working on how a character's actions can help a story move along. This directly correlates to what the students are working on in writing on their fictional narratives.

Writing: Students are working on writing a fictional narrative. Their task was to create a character from Athabasca and write about them. The biggest addition to their writing this week is the idea of dialogue and how to successfully use it.  They learned about how to place quotation marks and the punctuation that is associated with dialogue.

Math: This week we are focusing on multi-digit subtraction on a number line.  We are not currently working on using standard algorithm for solving problems. This will come later; however, my goal is for my students to understand the why behind the algorithm. Please continue working on multiplication facts. By the end of the year they will need to know through times 10.

Science: This week we are continuing our study on weather. We are looking at how the weather in the Arctic, Antarctic and Camas compare to one another.

Spelling:
live
without
life
different
off
Earth
through
first
head
there
because
almost
always
new
too
page
got
another

Mystery Questions:
What is February's birthstone?
What "holiday" is celebrated on February 2nd?
What day of the week does Valentine's Day fall on this year?
Which president of the United States was born on February 12?
Is this year a Leap Year?
How many days are in the month of February?

Dates to Remember:
2/1- No Wednesday early release.
2/10- Movie Night @ 6:00.
2/13-2/17- Lacamas Art Week

Thanks!
Miss Irwin

Week of 1/23/17

Ahoy!

Hope you are all enjoying your week. We are back to a full week here at school. It has been great getting to reconnect with your kiddos and start some in depth work. Here is what we are doing!

Reading: This week we are reading The Year of Miss Agnes. It is a historical fiction book centered around a teacher living in rural Alaska during the 1940's. We are focusing on looking at how a character's actions move a story along. We are encouraging the students to read like they are a writer. We want them to see that there are different things a author does that helps a story develop and move along. When reading at home with your child, stop and ask what actions the main character has done that helps to move the story along.

Writing: Using the story that we are reading and previous information that the students have learned about the Athabascans in Central Alaska, we are having students write their own historical fiction piece. The are creating their own characters, setting, and plot. I am very excited to see how the student's writing changes as they learn more about this very unique area and the unique people who live in it.

Math: In math we are working on adding multi-digit numbers. Our main focus has been on using a number line to accurately add two numbers together. The end of this week and into next week we will begin using the number line to subtract multi-digit numbers. Very soon we will start our timed multiplication quizzes! It is very important that students are practicing their multiplication facts every night! 

Science: Today we began our new unit on Weather. Over the next few weeks students will be recording the weather in Delta Junction, Antarctica, and Camas.

Spelling:
often
use
kind
head
also
four
show
been
around
began
above
long
took
air
there
were
large
might

Mystery Question: Have students write their spelling words on a piece of paper in their nicest handwriting. Bring in tomorrow...1/26.

Dates to Remember:
1/30- First snow make up day.
2/1- Character Education Assembly

Thanks!
Miss Irwin