Week of 3/20/2017

Ahoy!

I hope you are all have a great week! We are off to a great start in our classroom. This time of year is always my favorite because of the growth that we see in our students. Mrs. Blair and I were talking to day how far many of our students have come in the last few weeks! Here is what we are learning this week.

Reading: Today we started a new book titled The Song of Sky and Sand. It was amazing hearing the students have deep conversations about what they were reading. Our focus this week is on finding the central message of a story, while using the pictures and illustrations to help us understand the text.

Math: This week we are entering fraction land! Yay! I am working very hard to instill the attitude in my students that fractions are not difficult. Many students have a preconceived idea that fractions are very difficult, please help me break this by talking positively about fractions and pointing them out in your every day life! Continue to work on your multiplication facts. We will begin timed multiplication quizzes after spring break!

Writing: Students are well into their information essay! This week the students will be working on editing and creating their final drafts.

Spelling:
there
knew
little
still
today
sure
once
told
it's
often
school
however
different
began
try
then
know
its

Mystery Questions:
1) What season is it in the souther hemisphere if it's spring in the northern?
2) On the first day of Spring the southern hemisphere, the sun is directly over the ___________.
3) In America, which bird is often seen as symbolizing the arrival of the Spring season?
4) In Major League Baseball, Spring training happens in February and March. In what state does it take place?
5) Spring is the season of flowers. The Japanese celebrate the arrival of Spring by hosting mass viewings of which flower?
6) In America, which college sport holds its annual national championship tournament during the spring?

Thanks,
Miss Irwin

Week of 3/13/2017

Ahoy!

I am so sorry for the late post! Here is all the great things happening in our room this week.

Reading: We are continuing to learn about extreme environments that people live it. The rest of the week we will be looking at the Sami people of northern Sweden, Finland, and Norway. Our students have been very interested in all of the amazing places that people live, and how they survive in those places. While reading about this topic we have been focusing on finding the main idea and supporting details of a text! If you are looking to support this work at home you can try finding passages at readworks.org! 

Writing: The students are using their new knowledge about extreme places to live to help them write an informational essay. They will be slowly working through each part of the essay for the next week or two.

Math: We are diving in head first to our unit! Our learning this week has been focusing on finding elapsed time, and learning how to measure liquid volume and mass using the metric system. This will continue into next week before we switch to fractions. If you are looking to support your child's learning they can log on to our new program at ixl.com. We are just starting to use this program in our class and the students are really enjoying it! Please email me for your students username and password. 

Spelling:
know
world
however
never
during
soemthing
said
best
there
very
could
air
then
would
across
why
don't
today

Mystery Questions:
1) When does spring occur in the Northern Hemisphere? What date to what date?
2) Name two flowers that are planted as bulbs.
3) Name two forms of severe weather that occur in the United States in the spring.
4) What is the Latin word for spring?
5) During spring the Earth's axis starts to tilt towards __________. (Fill in the blank.)
6) What was Daylight Savings Time originally used for?

Have a great rest of your week!
Miss Irwin

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