Week 4

This upcoming week will be the first full week of school and we have some noteworthy events:

• We will begin our reading log routines on Monday. This year, our students will have a small booklet to keep track of their reading progress. 
• We have begun working on reading responses in class and your child will also begin working on a reading response independently, for homework on Mondays. This assignment will be due the first day of the following school week for review. 
• Third grade will have our Curriculum Conference at 6:00- 6:30 in the cafeteria on Wednesday. Please join us as the Third Grade teachers give an overview of what your third grader will be learning in class this year. 
• Our first Family Friday will start at 8:30 am. Our students have brought in artifacts for their All about Me Bags. These artifacts will tell us about the interest of our children. We invite you to come in and get to know your child's classmates. 
• We will start Music class this Friday. Ms. Gabel will be our instructor this year and we are excited to learn songs through singing and recorder playing this year!

Please look through your child's homework folder and sign the bottom of the homework sheet. If your child is missing an assignment, please encourage him/ her to bring it in the next school day. 

Thank you for your support! Have a beautiful weekend!

Week 3

It was great to see so many family members at our first classroom event! We have some beautiful Writer's Notebooks waiting for us to start our writing adventures in. Thank you to all family members  who came and helped out, especially with the tricky contact paper!

We began our written homework this week with two math assignments. On top of this, students are expected to read for at least 20 minutes daily and have been working on selecting Just Right books in class. In the blue homework folder, there is a reference to working on Reader's Notebooks, which I have asked students to cross out for this week and next week. We will begin Reading response on the week of September 28 after we have practiced writing a few types of responses together in class.

Here's what to expect for next week:

• On Monday, we will start Writing Workshop in class. Our first unit is Building a Writer's Life.  In this unit, we will learn the procedures for Writing Workshop and gather ideas for our future writing projects. Students will also learn to take an idea and stretch it out through description and explanation. 
• Schools will be closed on Wednesday (Yom Kippur) and on Thursday (Eid al-Adha). 
• Items for the All About Me project are due in class on Friday. We will spend some time in class preparing our artifacts for display during Family Friday of the following week.  

Have a beautiful weekend!

Week 2

Our first week in school was a busy one, with many supplies to sort; names and routines to learn. Our class has been cooperative and the children enjoyed working on our team building activities. We will continue to get to know each other better as the year progresses. 

Many of you have bought the School Toolkit and do not need to send any supplies in with your child. Those supplies have, for the most part, been distributed to the rightful owners. All children have their notebooks so we can begin our learning next week. Thank you for your support and patience!

Here's what to expect next week: 

• We will begin Reading Workshop with a unit on Building a Reading Life. The purpose of this unit is to create habits that will support your child's reading. We will work on improving stamina to help our readers read longer and with more understanding of /attention to the story and ideas. 
• In Writing Workshop, we will introduce the Writer's Notebook. Students will mine their own experiences and observations to create ideas for future writing projects. A notice for collecting pictures and flat artifacts to decorate a notebook went out earlier this week. Please have the collection ready for Friday, September 18.
• Math began this Friday with an introduction to the vocabulary of Addition and Subtraction. unit one is Addition and Subtraction of Numbers up to 1,000. This unit focuses on pattern and properties that will help your child compute larger numbers. 
• Maps of the continents will be our focus in Social Studies. This exciting unit will include maps building and learning about the seven continents that make up our world. 

In closing, I'd like to thank you all for your support this week. I look forward to building a successful school experience with you and your child!

Welcome to the Third Grade!

September 9th is a momentous day! As we start our third grade adventure together, please remember to come to school at 8:20am or earlier. We will meet at the school yard and after some introductions, our class will go up to the classroom.

Many of you have purchased the school tool box and those supplies are being distributed gradually this week. If you did not purchase a school toolbox, please send in the following items on the first day.

1 each	Composition Notebook, Wide Rule, green cover
1 each	Composition Notebook, Wide Rule, blue cover
2 each	Composition Notebook, Wide Rule, red Cover
2 each *	Composition Notebook, Wide Rule, black Cover
1 each	Poly (plastic) folder, purple, 2 pockets
1 each	Poly (plastic) folder, black, 2 pockets
1 each	Poly (plastic) folder, red, 2 pockets
1 each	Poly (plastic) folder, orange, 2 pockets
1 each	Poly (plastic) folder, yellow, 2 pockets
1 each	Poly (plastic) folder, blue, 2 pockets
1 each	Poly (plastic) folder, green, 2 pockets
2 each	Poly (plastic) folder, blue, 2 pockets with prongs/ fasteners

There was also a fill-in sheet attached to the letter sent to families over the summer. Please have your child bring it to class this week so that we can quickly establish a successful dismissal routine.

This year we will have dismissal in the school yard at 2:40pm.

I look forward to seeing you!