Newsletter for May 13, 2011

Dear Families,

I think the countdown has begun!  Here is what's been happening over the past week and what is planned for this coming week.

What's Up!

1.       Reading:  We finished up several loose end projects this week along with working hard on your CAFÉ reading strategies with Daily 5.  Next week we will focus our reading time on a very interesting book called, The Mysteries of Harris Burdick.  Please ask your child more about the book throughout the week.  We will be doing several writing pieces together based on this book.  We will also be taking our final theme test of the year.  The students are very excited to be finished with our reading anthologies.

2.     Writing: We have been working on our comparison writing this week by writing papers comparing the classic Cinderella and the Chinese Cinderella.  We have also started our final Tic Tac Toe writing board for the year.

3.     Spelling:

1.      mystery

2.      clue

3.      wonder

4.      adventure

5.      write

6.      right

7.      school

8.      Winstanley

9.      Salvat

10.  Jensenius

 

4.     Vocabulary: We will be focusing on finding and sharing interesting words from our writing this week.

 

5.     Math:   In math we focused our week to learning about how to measure to the nearest inch, ½ inch, and ¼ inch.  This is still a bit challenging to many.  We also discussed converting from inches to feet and feet to yards.  Measurement is a very important skill that can be easily integrated into your child’s daily life by asking them to help you with house projects, yard projects, and even cooking!  Please try to include your child in these types of activities so that they are able to see the real world connections!  Next week we will start measuring in the metric system.

6.     Science: In science the students continued to learn all about matter.  Several experiments took place that dealt with the density of liquids and also with the separation of mixtures.  Please discuss with your child what they learned J  The test will take place on Wednesday, May 18^th.  E-squared students will take the test on Thursday, May 19^th.

7.     Social Studies: In social studies, we started a project based on the movie UP.  This will end up being a scrapbook called an “Adventure Book” they bring home!  If you have any type of scrapbooking materials or tools you would like to donate to the project feel free to send into the classroom.  We are looking for things such as magazines that relate to famous or fun places in the USA, stickers, borders, scrapbook paper, special scissors, etc.

8.     Cursive and Keyboarding: We began a fun video project that relates to social studies!  We are creating tourism commercials for a place in the western USA using photostory!  Students have been finding pictures on the Internet, along with researching interesting facts about their state.

 

Tiger Trek – Did you return your envelope?  Make sure all money is turned in ASAP J   Thank you for supporting Amberly Elementary School!!!

 

Field Trip May 19th

We will be going on our field trip to the Nature Center on May 19^th.  This is a great time for all!  Remember, there will be no hot lunch on this day unless your child signed up for a chartbuster lunch on their permission slip.  Parent volunteers are Mrs. Philion, Mrs. Beuker, and Mr. Millar.  Please arrive at school no later than 8:45 – sign in at the office and get a name tag.  There is not sufficient room on the bus for two classes and all the chaperones, so you will need to drive separately to the Nature Center.  Thanks so much for volunteering!   

 

Fun Assemblies this Week

We had two great assemblies this week.  The first was Hit a Homerun for Nutrition.  This wonderful program put on by some of our best chefs in the Kalamazoo Area taught our children all about healthy options for breakfast.  Students were able to sample fruit, granola, yogurt, and fancy scrambled eggs as a part of the program.  I have attached a healthy eating guide provided by the team of chefs.

We also were able to go see Mrs. Meyers and Mrs. Burkholz’s classes at the Wax Museum.  The fifth graders did a wonderful job as usual taking on the persona of an important member in America Revolutionary History.

 

More Multiplication Ideas

Keep studying those facts. We are taking 1 minute timed fact tests several times a week.  The more they have memorized, the easier it will be. Here are websites or use the flashcards we sent home earlier.  If you are looking for other ideas, send me an email or give me a call!  It will be critical to continue to study these facts over the summer so they can be ready to go in fourth grade.

      http://www.mathfactcafe.com/

      http://www.aaastudy.com/mul.htm

      http://www.aplusmath.com/

      http://www.multiplication.com – LOVE this for self-timed and graded tests!!!

      http://www.coolmath4kids.com/times-tables/index.html

      http://resources.oswego.org/games/mathmagician/cathymath.html

 

Behavior

Our one final word for the year is CARING.  This started Monday, May 9^th.  It is extremely important that we spend the rest of the year being caring towards one another and not hurting feelings.  Our reward will be June 2^nd.

 

End of the Year Celebration

To celebrate a successful year of third grade we will be watching the movie UP on the last day of school, June 3^rd.  We, the third grade teachers, will be providing healthy snacks for our wonderful students.

 

Warm Weather and Student Dress – A note from the office

Students should not wear “short shorts”, strapless tops, spaghetti strap shirts, bare midriffs, or pants/shorts that “sag” so undergarments are in view.  Flip flops should not be worn to school on gym days and/or for outside recess time.  A pair of tennis shoes must be brought to school (for outside/gym) if a students chooses to wear flip flops at school.  Students should also not wear any clothing to school that advertises or promotes drugs or alcohol. 

 

Dates to Remember

May 17^th – Ice Cream Social 6:30 pm – Say goodbye to our retiring teachers, Mrs. Higgins and Mrs. Rieser.

May 18^th – Science Test

May 19^th – Our Third Grade Field Trips to the Nature Center

May 27^th – Wacky Hair Day

May 30^th – No School – Memorial Day

June 3^rd – Last Day of School - Half Day

 

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Mrs. Winstanley