Week 17: See You in 2018!

Before we say good bye to 2017, I must thank you all for the wonderful class gift! It was extravagant and really appreciated. This year has been a year of tremendous growth for the children as they made a transition towards being more independent. There has been much hard work and sometimes we've had to try again but there has been much progress. We are looking forward to a new year of continued growth and successes!

As we go on recess, there will be no written assignments. If you would like your child to keep up their academic work, please use the links below:

Math games

http://www.smartygames.com/igre/math/halloweenMath.html

https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/division-word-problems

https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/division-facts-for-2-3-4-5-and-10-true-or-false

https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/division-facts-up-to-10-select-the-missing-numbers

https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiplication-word-problems-find-the-missing-factor

Writing Practice

https://www.ixl.com/ela/grade-3/is-it-a-complete-sentence-or-a-fragment

https://www.ixl.com/ela/grade-3/capitalization-review

https://www.ixl.com/ela/grade-3/is-it-a-complete-sentence-or-a-fragment

For the first week of 2018:

• We return to school on Tuesday, January 2nd.
• Our Dance Enrichment will begin on Thursday. Students should dress for movement. We will beaked to remove our shoes and socks. Girls should avoid wearing tights on Dance days so that  it will be easier to go barefoot. 
• We will have Family Friday! You are invited to come see our shelters and learn about the culture of the people who live there. 

Have a wonderful and restful Winter Recess! Happy Holidays to all!

Week 16: Happy Holidays!!!

A belated Happy Hanukah to all our families! We have had a major celebration today and the response has been overwhelmingly positive! The Third Grade Cultural Luncheon is always a highlight in our year and this year was especially amazing. We had so many delicious and nourishing foods. There was so much love and care evident in the room. The children are truly appreciative and many have expressed their wish that they could have this event everyday. What an amazing way to start the holiday season! Thank you all for the effort and cheer you put into the foods. So many of you came in to help set up, serve and clean up and we are very grateful for that, too!

For the final school week of 2017:

• We are headed to the Armory on Tuesday. Please remind your child to dress with running shoes.
•  If your child is leaving for a holiday trip before Friday, please send a note letting me know so I can inform the main office. There will be no homework assigned during the holiday. School resumes on Tuesday, January 2. 

Have a warm weekend! Happy Holidays to everyone!

Week 15: Cultural Luncheon

It was great to see everyone on Thursday! Thank you for your patience as you waited for your appointment and  I appreciate all your comments and support. These conferences have provided me with some insights and direction as to how we will work together to have a productive remainder of the year. There were no Weekly Updates attached to your child's homework folder this week due to the conferences but it will be there next week. Please keep checking them through the upcoming weeks.

After a busy and productive week, we are looking forward to celebrating! Next week, we will have the Cultural Luncheon which will take place from 12:00 to 12:55 pm Friday at our Multimedia room. So many of you have generously promised to share some amazing dishes from your family. The children and quite a few teachers are looking forward to this!

Dishes for the luncheon can be brought to the MMr anytime before the celebration. Please have your food in disposable containers with your child's name on it.  Please keep in mind that there will be plenty of food for the children and adults to try so we really only need about 30 teaspoon sized portions or enough to fit in a 9 x 12 pan. There will be a specific table set aside for our class. Please look a label for 3-303!

We have begun a new unit on Nonfiction Reading this week. The main focus of the unit is to help our children read information texts with understanding of main ideas and supporting details. Children are getting the chance to shop in our library's nonfiction section and they are having a great time with books about animals. places and science topics like minerals and weather. Our Reading response sheet has also changed to reflect our new learning. Below is a sample response to show how the response can be written. We worked on it together as a class after reading from Shark Attack.

Here's what to expect next week:

• We are wrapping up our work on Multiplication this week. There will be a test on Chapter 5 on Thursday and afterwards, we will use our multiplication facts to help us with Division facts. Please continue to use the links provided in previous weeks' posts to help your child practice multiplication facts with speed and accuracy.
• The Third Grade Cultural Luncheon will wrap up our week on Friday! We look forward to many of you joining us on that day. 

Week 14: Parent Teacher Conferences

Please check your child's homework page for your Parent Teacher Conference time. It will be written in on the bottom of this week's sheet if you requested a meeting. Conferences will be held on Thursday, December 7th.

These photos are from our latest Buddies activity. Our third graders are teaching their young buddies how to make a turkey decoration. They did an excellent job of explaining and showing what they just learned to do the day before!

 Here's what's happening next week:

• Chapter 4 Math tests will be returned on Monday. We will continue Multiplication strategies in Chapter 5 with a focus on Number that are bigger than ten. 
• We will be at the Armory on Tuesday. Please have your child dressed for physical activity.
• On Wednesday, your child will receive their first report card for Third Grade. Please look for it in your child's book bag.
• We will visit the school Book Fair at 9:30 on Wednesday. Prices for books range from $5 to $20+. 
• Thursday will be a half day. Children will be dismissed at 11:30.  Parent Teacher Conferences will begin at 12:30.

Have a beautiful weekend!

Week 13

Happy Thanksgiving to all!
This is a great time to build memories with your child as we move deeper into our culture units. As part of the unit, children will be asked to do a little research about their mother's and father's side of the family. In the next few weeks as we spend more time with our families, help your child with this by encouraging them to talk to senior members of the family and to listen to family stories. Please keep an eye out for the Ancestor Research sheet that was sent home on Wednesday. If your child was not here before the Thanksgiving break, please refer to the picture below to get a sense of the questions your child will write about when they complete the assignment for November 30th.

Here's what else will be happening next week: 

• We will take a trip to the Armory on Tuesday. Please have your child dressed for running and playing!
• On Wednesday, third graders will get to build a shelter from another part of the world after studying the culture this shelter belongs to. 
• We will have the Chapter 4 Math test on Thursday. This exam will focus on Multiplication facts. Here are the math links to support your child's learning from this week: 

          https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/properties-of-multiplication

          https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-7

• Please keep in mind that Parent Teacher Conferences will take place December 7.

Have an excellent Thanksgiving weekend!

Week 12: Thanksgiving Week

Happy Thanksgiving! If your child is leaving before Wednesday next week, please send a note letting me know. There will not be any homework assigned over the long weekend and we will not have a reading response sheet for next week.

My thanks to the many parents who have been checking the homework folder for notices and Friday Updates attached to the children's weekly homework sheets. Please keep an eye out for the notices regarding the Third Grade Cultural Luncheon. A save-the-date notice went home today to announce that the event will take place on December 15th. There will be more notices in the following weeks with further instructions for home support with the activities we will be doing in class in order to prepare for this event.

Please feel free to have your child use this math link to support the learning we have been doing in class: https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-7

Here's what to expect for the next shortened week:

• We are going to finish our work with Mystery after next week and begin reading Nonfiction books. In this reading unit, students will study the structures of a nonfiction text and learn how to use text features such as the table of contents and pictures to help them understand the main ideas of a text. 
• We will visit with our Buddies class on Wednesday!
• Schools will be closed on Thursday and Friday in observance of Thanksgiving. 

Have a great weekend!

Week 11

We had fun at the Brooklyn Museum this week as we got to look at the things that make our shelters into homes. We want to thank Jonah's and Kay's dads; Iker's and Jake's moms for coming on the trip as chaperones. This trip supported our current Social Studies unit on Cultures Around the World. We've been examining how our shelters are built from our natural resources to give us protection from our climate and environment. In the pictures here, we are examining maps to find the natural resources found on the continents.

Here's what to expect for next week:

• Monday is Picture Retake Day. If your child was absent on the original day, your child will be called down for his/her picture to be taken.
• We've been working hard to learn the multiplication facts.  Your child can continue practicing with the following links: 

https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-6
 https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-4

Have a cozy weekend!

Week 10

These photos were taken on Wacky Wardrobe Day. There were some creative choices of outfits and everyone enjoyed participating! We also had fun making cards for God's Love We Deliver during Family Friday this week. It was great to meet the extended family members who came in to help and to check out our projects.

Here's what  is happening next week:

• Schools will be closed on Tuesday due to Election Day. 
• On Wednesday, we will be on our first field trip to the Brooklyn Museum. Chaperones received a note this week with information regarding the time and place to meet the class. Due to a last minute change in the museum educator's schedule, we have been asked to come to the museum a half and hour later so chaperones will be asked to meet us at the school at 10 am instead of 9:30. 

The children did well with our chapter 3 math test this week. The test has been returned to your child on Friday for you to review. To prepare for next week's unit on multiplication facts here are some links your child might use:

• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-2
• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-4
• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-3
• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/multiply-by-6

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 9

Our Mystery unit is under way and the kids have had a great time being detectives! Since this is the first week, we have been familiarizing ourselves with how to read mysteries with comprehension.

In regards to the independent reading work, many kids were in the middle of their books from last week when we began our unit. It is natural that the children would want to finish their last stories before fully diving into their mysteries. We have decided that we would read mystery books at school but save our other books for home reading.

Our reading response assignment can be about the main character in any book. In mystery, there can often be a couple or trio of characters that receive equal billing, so it is just best if your child picks one of them to write about. Reading responses are given out on Mondays and due the following Monday. On shortened school weeks, we will skip this assignment.

Here are the math links that support the work we did recently in class:

• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/relate-addition-and-multiplication-for-equal-groups
• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/write-multiplication-sentences-for-number-lines
• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/write-multiplication-sentences-for-arrays

Coming next week:

• Tuesday is Wacky Wardrobe Day for Third graders. On this day, we don't have to worry too much about being fashionable. In the past, kids have come in with some creative ways to wear their regular clothes. Some clothes are turned inside out, some children layer skirts over pants, some wear paisley and plaid combinations. If your child chooses to wear mismatched shoes, please make sure the shoes are of the same height.
• We will have our Chapter 3 math test on Thursday.
• On Family Friday, we will spend some time together with aunts, uncles or grandparents who are invited to our classroom. We look forward to seeing you there!

Have a warm weekend!

Week 8

October continues with an exciting new unit in Reading! Next week, we will begin looking at the genre of Mystery. This unit challenges students to read with attention to details in order to make theories as the reader tries to solve crime along with the characters in the book.

We also started the first of three units about multiplication in our math work. Chapter three focuses on the concepts behind multiplication and strategies for figuring out the product before students learn the multiplication facts. Here is a link for additional support:

• https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/relate-addition-and-multiplication-for-equal-groups

You can also continue to play the Halloween Math facts game and choose the multiplication option if your child has begun to study the facts and want a speed challenge:

• http://www.smartygames.com/igre/math/halloweenMath.html 

Here's what else is happening next week:

• We are heading to the Armory on Tuesday. Please make sure your child is dressed with shoes that are good for running. 
• We will meet with our Buddies on Friday. Our buddy class this year will be Ms. Concannon's first graders. Our third graders are ready to meet with the younger children and show them their work on their Continents poster. :)

Have a great weekend and Happy Boo Bash! 

Week 7

This Friday, students received the first of their Friday Updates. This is a small yellow slip pasted onto the bottom of your child's weekly homework sheet. It is intended to give you a snapshot of how your child was during the school week. Often it is a compliment on your child's general behavior or a remark about a topic your child is working on. Please review this over the weekend and sign the sheet so I know you have seen it.

This week, we worked on writing our reading response with more explanation to help up the level of our writing. Due to the shorter week, we did not send this assignment home, which is why the assignment was crossed off the homework sheet. We will send a new sheet home on Monday.

Here's what's coming next week:

• On Tuesday, we will have our Chapter 2 Math test. It was a quick unit on Data that built on what your child learned in the second grade. We have been working on reading the story problems more carefully this unit and students are encourage to read and reread the problem in chunks and to think about how numbers can replace parts of the story. The problems in the book can contain much information in very few words!
• Here are two links that might be helpful for your child: http://www.smartygames.com/igre/math/halloweenMath.html In this seasonal game, you have to use the left or right arrows of the keyboard to move the ghost underneath the pumpkin with the answer to the math expression. Watch out for the bat, which will move the ghost back to the starting point!

          https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/interpret-line-plots 

• Picture Day will take place on Wednesday. We will receive instructions for how to order pictures soon. Please keep an eye out for a notice in your child's folder.
• The Annual Boo Bash will take place on Saturday, October 21. 

Have a cozy weekend!

Week 6: Schools Closed on Monday

The All About Me Museums were a really fun way to get to know each other. Thank you all for coming in and complimenting the children's first quick publish of the third grade. There were many heart warming stories told about our special artifacts and many of the stories celebrated our families!

Your child has probably finished his or her first reading response sheet. We have practiced how a response looks like in class and children have been describing characters in our read alouds ( Tooter Pepperday by Jerry Spinelli; Freckle Juice by Judy Blume) and supporting their descriptions by giving details from the text.  Using text evidence is an important skill we will be revisiting often this year. 

Students took the Mid-Chapter Checkpoint for our current math unit. They were returned to your child today. Please review and sign. This assessment is not as formal as the chapter test but will provide feedback to what needs to be retaught so that the children can have a better understanding. As we continue our work with charts and graphs, it has become necessary for students to revisit skip counting skills. Here are two links that will provide practice with this skill. This is also a great way to prepare for the upcoming multiplication units.
https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/skip-counting
https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/skip-counting-puzzles

 In addition, here is a link for additional practice with picture graphs:
https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/interpret-pictographs

Here's what's happening next week:

• Schools will be closed on Monday in observance of Columbus Day.
• We will take our first trip to the Armory on Tuesday. Please have your child dressed with sneakers. 

Finally, I would like to thank parents who have donated books to our class library. If you are purchasing through our Amazon Wishlist, please be sure to let us know who you are so we may thank you! If you are thinking of donating books for the class, we would currently benefit most from nonfiction childrens books about the continents.

Have a beautiful three day weekend!

Chapter 1 Practice

The Chapter 1 Math test was returned to your child today. In general, the class did well with the content. Of course, there can always be room for practice, especially since we are moving onto a different topic in math. If you feel your child can benefit from some review, please check out the following links:

Subtraction with estimation:  https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/estimate-differences
Addition with estimation:  https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/estimate-sums
Subtraction word problems: https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/subtract-numbers-up-to-three-digits-word-problems

These links will provide a handful of problems for practice which is sufficient for a quick review. The website does time out, unless you have a subscription.

Regarding the math test, please review it before signing so that I know that you have seen it. We will keep it in class as part of your child's math portfolio.

Week 5: Happy October

Time flies! We are already one month into our school year. Our children have settled down into routines and we are now getting into more academic activities in class.

We were so happy to see many family members show up to help decorate your notebooks. The notebooks turned out beautifully and the children enjoyed sharing the stories behind their pictures. It helped to generate excitement as we prepared to launch our writing unit on Personal Narratives! This unit builds on second grade skills learned in the Small Moments unit last year. Our children will think about real life events and use dialogue, description and elaboration to help create stories around their observations.

On Monday, we will have the Chapter 1 math test. We have been working with estimation, addition and subtraction this past unit.  The next chapter, Represent and Interpret Data, will focus on graphs and charts. Addition and subtraction skills will be folded into the work as we read charts and graphs to find totals and differences.

Here's what else to expect next week:

• Math test on Monday. You can use the following link to give your child additional practice if you feel it is needed:  https://www.ixl.com/math/grade-3/rounding-nearest-ten-or-hundred-only
• We will unveil our All About Me museums during Family Friday. students will display their artifacts and show their first quickly published piece of writing. Please join us at 8:35- 9:15. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 4

It was great to see so many families at the Curriculum Conferences on Friday! I hope we were able to offer you insight to what the Third Grade experience will be like for our children. Many of you offered insight to your child that has been helpful. I know I can count on everyone to continue communicating and supporting each other as the year progresses. Many parents have asked if we needed anything in class. We currently would love to add more books about continents to our library. Please check out our Amazon wishlist on the right side of this post.

Here's what to expect next week:

• We have just begun our Social Studies work with a quick study of the Seven Continents. Students will use nonfiction texts to help learn about the seven continents. Children are reading books about individual continents and thinking about what the author is trying to teach us through the writing.  Children will write a about what they have learned and present it to others.
• The class will visit the school garden with our Garden Parent on Monday afternoon!
• Please continue to collect pictures to decorate your child's Writers Notebook. These picture will serve as inspiration for some of our writing projects this year! Parents are invited to join us after drop off (at around 8:35) on Friday, September 29th to help decorate the notebooks.

Have a wonderful weekend and a happy Rosh Hashanah!

Week 3

My thanks goes to all the families that have turned in the many forms that were sent out on the first days of school. We almost have a class set of each one. If you have not done so, please fill out the lunch form, dismissal form, neighborhood walk form, and photo release form.

I also want to thank everyone who has sent in a note with their child to communicate with me. The children have been very reliable and helpful in making sure I see the notes.

Here are some events to look forward to next week:

• Tuesday, September 19 will be Curriculum Night. Come join the Third Grade teachers in the cafeteria as we give a brief overview of the year to come and then visit our classroom! Cluster teachers will also be speaking about their respective programs. 
• Schools will be closed on Thursday and Friday for Rosh Hashanah. 

On Friday, September 29th, the Third Grade is inviting parents to come and decorate our Writer's Notebooks. Please keep an eye out for a flyer that will go home next week with more details. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 2: First Full Week

The first two days of class have been exciting and filled with lots of exploration as we got to learn more about our new everythings! The kids have been very sweet and many have been happy to reunite with old friends. Lots of hugs were given and received this week!

Next week, we will begin to settle ourselves into some important routines. Children will begin to receive some written math homework. This usually consist of two pages per night from Monday to Friday. The first page contains calculation problems while the second page contains some mixed review problems from topics learned in previous units. For Monday, the children will only be required to do the even numbered problems on the first page and all the problems on the second page. If your child wants, he or she could also do the odd numbered problems for extra practice. There will be many references to second grade topics in the upcoming units. Please encourage your child to try his or her best but if they are really stuck, we will review it in class.

Children will also begin borrowing books from our classroom library. Students have been eagerly exploring the library in class and learning about the different titles that are available in the classroom. We will focus on fiction books to match our work in Reading Workshop. The first unit in Reading will help our third graders develop reading stamina and routines that will encourage more active and comprehensive reading.

We will also begin using our Writers Notebook to collect story ideas. Using the objects in our All About Me bags as inspiration, we will reflect on important moments, people and memories to help us craft Personal Naratives. Please make sure your child has the All About Me bag on Monday.

Please be aware that there was change made to the Third Grade dismissal routine. Instead of dismissing in the yard, we will dismiss in front of the school entrance on 11th Ave. Our class will wait right next to the entrance. 

Finally, many of you have returned the dismissal form and have been keeping me updated on any changes to your child's pickups. Thank you for making the dismissal routine easier! If you have not done so, please return the many forms sent out as soon as you can.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Welcome Back!!!

Hello, Class 3-303! 

Tomorrow is the start of a brand new school year. I'm excited to finally meet all of the children after reading their sweet letters from second grade. 

Here's few reminders to help you prepare for the first day: 

• Many children have their school supplies delivered to school. If your child did not, please remember that all supplies do not have to be brought in for the first day. We will start with just notebooks and folders for tomorrow so please provide your child with that. Refer to the summer letter that was sent home in August to help determine when to bring in the rest. 
• Each child will need to have a snack for the first day. Lunch will start at 12:55 for third graders. 
• There has been a change to the third grade dismissal. We will dismiss at the main entrance on 11th Avenue at 2:40pm.
•  Here is our weekly special classes schedule:

Monday: Art from 9:25-10:10

Tuesday: Music from 8:35-9:20 and Theater from 10:15-11:00

Wednesday: Physical Education from 10:15- 11:00 (Remember to have your child wear sneakers on this day!)

Thursday: Computers from 9:25-10:10
Friday: Science from 10:15 – 11:00

We will start our school year with Computers tomorrow. 

See you in the yard tomorrow starting at 8:20am! 

Week 39: Final Post

This year has flown by and we are down to our last few days of school! I would like to thank everyone for their support and contributions this year. Without your interest and help, the school year would not have been as successful.

Here's what to expect in the next two weeks:

• If Mother Nature cooperates, we will have the annual Staff vs. Fifth Grade Kickball Game on Wednesday. Please send your child in with a towel to sit on, sun protection and a extra snack. We also encourage students to wear their school t-shirt to show school spirit. We would likely be in the school yard for almost two hours. 
• School will be closed on Monday, June 26th for Eid al-Fitr.
• The last day of school will be on June 28th. Students will be dismissed at 11:30 am. there will have their final report cards with them. You will receive an email during the summer with information about your child's new class.

Happy Fathers Day! Have beautiful weekend!

Week 38

As we wind down, we need your help with a few of things as we begin the transition into fourth grade:

• If your child has any books borrowed from the classroom library, please gather them to send  in by Friday of next week.
• If you have not already done so, please send in an email address through which the school can contact you over the summer. There was form sent out last week but if you did not have it, please write your name, your child's name, class 3-303 and your email address on a piece of paper.
• Your child will begin bringing home their supplies. We will recycle most old assignments but many kids want to keep their special projects. Please encourage your child to take them out of the book bag before returning to school the next day. 

Here are some events taking place next week: 

• School is closed on Monday for a Clerical Day.
• We will visit the garden to plant the seedlings we worked on at the last Family Friday. This list will take place on Tuesday, weather permitting. 
• We will visit the Father's Day Cookie sale at 9:50-10:05 on Friday. If you would like for your child to purchase a sweet present for a special adult, please provide your child with $5 or more. 

Have a beautiful weekend!

Week 37

We have begun the last month of school! There are many feelings of excitement over the upcoming summer vacation but there are also feelings of sadness as we end our time together.

As the year winds down, we have begun the process of thinking ahead to the next grade. With each child, we are are making plans to keep up our active reading over the summer. It is important for children to read daily for an extended amount if time if a child is to make any progress in their reading. Please consider planning reading time in the day for your child. You'll notice that there will be no more written reading responses due for homework from this week on. It is still important for your child to keep reading and logging in their reading pace.

Here's what to expect in the next week:

• On Tuesday, we will visit the garden with our parent gardener! It will be a great opportunity to check in on the plants we cultivated on Family Friday in early May :) 
• Schools will be closed on Thursday for a Clerical Day. 

Have a sunny weekend!

Week 35

We are so glad that many of you could make it to our Dance share on Monday! The kids were very excited to show you some of the dance moves they have been working on the past 13 weeks. Thank you for being an enthusiastic audience!  This upcoming Monday will sadly be our last session with BAX for this year.

Here's what to expect this upcoming week:

• We will have a final session for Dance on Monday.
• On Wednesday, we will take a trip to BAM and enjoy the DanceAfrica show. Chaperones have already prepaid for their tickets. If you are a chaperone, please arrive at the school around 9:45am. 
• On Thursday, we will have our Music performance at the old Bishop Ford site at 9:00am. We hope to see you there!
• On Friday, we will have Field Day!

Have a great weekend!

Week 34:

My thanks to all of you for the lovely notes and generous gifts given during Teacher Appreciation Week! While I appreciate the special care this week, I especially am grateful for the support you have given the class and I throughout the year. All our successes are due to this wonderful partnership!

To support our work on shapes this week, your child can practice with the IXL Math Link. Under the Triangle and Quadrilaterals section, game DD.3 (Classify Quadrilaterals) best matches the work we are doing.

Here's what to look forward to next week: 

• We have a Dance Share in the MMR at 9:00 am on Monday. We hope to see you there!
• Please remember to send your child's salt dough and cardboard backing for our map making work on Wednesday.

To the special ladies in our lives, HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

Week 33

Now that our testing is over, we can look forward to the remainder of the school year as a time to prepare ourselves for the next year.

Here's what to expect for next week:

• We have our regular Dance class on Monday and Thursday this week. 
• We will have a teaching artist from BAM on Monday to prepare the class for our upcoming DanceAfrica trip. 
• On Friday, we will have our annual Mother's Day Plant Sale. If you are interested in having your child purchase a plant for the special lady (or ladies) in his/ her life, please send your child with cash. Plants range from $2 -$20.

On May 15, there will be a Third grade Dance share. Parents will be invited to come in and watch as our students show what they have been working on during the Monday Dance classes. Please keep an eye out in the homework folder for a notice about the time and the place.

Have a great weekend!

Week 32: NYS Math Assessment

We've had a fun week with many special events. We were visited by authors Ted and Betsy Lewin, and got to participate in the annual Earth Day parade. We also had two dance classes!

On May 2nd, 3rd and 4th, Third graders will take their first standardized Math test. Like the ELA in April, your child will be asked to answer questions on math topics taught in this grade and previous grades. We have been working hard to review many math topics to help prepare us for the contents of the exam. The kids have been doing a great job of reviewing their number facts and working on reading math story problems carefully.

Here's what to expect next week:

• We will have Dance on Monday.
• The Math test will take place on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, with Friday being a make up day for anyone who is absent on the regular testing day.
• We will have a planting activity for May's Family Friday!

Have a gorgeous weekend!

Week 31

Welcome back to a short school week! We were able to pick up where we left off and continue practicing for the upcoming math test on May 2nd, 3rd and 4th. In the past few days, we have practiced some of the trickier times tables and found that the review was helpful to us. It would be great if each child took a few minutes each day to review the multiplication facts that have been more challenging ( 4, 6, 7, 8 and 9) and to also practice them as division facts (instead of saying 7x8= ?, have you child solve 56 divided by 7= ?)

Please be on the lookout for our new PS 154 T-shirt. A flyer went home before the vacation with information on how to purchase the new shirt. This shirt is to be worn during school trips, especially the upcoming June Field Day. If you need a second copy of the flyer, please ask your child to bring one home on Monday.

Here's what else to expect for next week:

• We will have Dance class on Monday and Thursday of next week.
• We are visiting the Armory on Tuesday.
• On Wednesday, Third graders will be visited by authors and illustrators Ted and Betsy Lewin. This list will help launch our study of Africa. Ted and Betsy will share their adventures in the Impenetrable Forest of Africa, which was detailed in their book, Gorilla Walk. 

Have an excellent weekend!

Week 30: See you April 19th!

Happy Spring Break to everyone! We had a fun Family Friday am we got to meet our Buddies' families. The kids were very sweet in helping each other make crafts for our Earth Day Parade on April 21.

There were no homework assignments for the recess but students were encouraged to review their times and division facts in preparation for the upcoming Math test. In class we have been reviewing topics previously taught to strengthen our understanding of concepts we expect to see on these exams. On the IXL math games link, you can have your child practice with any games in the Multiplication Fluency section , the Division Fluency section or game H.1 under the Multiplication section.

Here's what to expect for the upcoming weeks:

• We will return to class on Wednesday, April 19th.
• The Earth Day parade will take place on Friday. We will have more details as to what time we will march around our school block when we come back to school. 

Please note that a flyer for purchasing the new school T shirt went home in your child's homework folder today. The T shirt is to be worn during field trips. 

Have a beautiful and restful eleven days!

Week 29

After a long week of ELA testing, we have earned a lovely weekend break. As we move forward, we are reassessing our reading goals and making plans to continue our progress. We are also preparing to for the upcoming Math test which will take place from May 2 to May 4.

Here's what to expect for next week:

• We will have Dance class on Monday and Thursday. Please note the extra session and have your child dressed for Dance on both days.
• We are going to the Armory on Tuesday. 
• We will have Family Friday on the 7th. This session will focus on making an Earth Day shaker with our Buddies from Mrs. Concannon's class. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 28: ELA testing

The English Language Arts Assessment will take place next week starting on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. This will be the first time most of our third graders are taking a standardized test. For our students, this is just an opportunity to use the skills and knowledge they have acquired over their school years and across subjects. The test is untimed but most kids will take roughly an hour to complete the sessions.

To prepare your child on that day, please make sure your child has had a good night's rest. A nutritious breakfast should also be eaten. Of course, this is like any other day and we are treating it as such. Students will not be assigned homework during the week but we suggest that your child keep up his/ her independent reading habits.

In class, we have talked about how this test is does not require anything that they have not practiced before and most kids have been taking it all in stride. Many children have enjoyed the high interest reading passages from previous years tests. We have talked about how the expectation is not to get a certain grade but to do our best on this exam with focused reading and writing.

Here's what else is happening next week:

• We will have our Dance Enrichment on Monday. If you have not already done so,check out a small sample of the dancing we have worked on by watching the video on our class play list. 
• Our unit on China will come to a close. Next destination, Africa!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 27: ELA Test March 28- 30

We are rapidly approaching a new experience for many of our students: Standardized testing! We will administer the test during the mornings of March 28 to 30th. We aim to start testing after 9 am. Children will have unlimited time to take the test but we estimate it would take roughly 60 to 70 minutes. This test does not factor into promotional criteria.

Students have been preparing for these tests all year by reading and writing in class. We have gone over some test formats with the class to help children understand multiple choice strategies and students are getting a good review of reading and writing strategies.

Here are some events to look forward to:

• The Jump-athon will culminate on Friday. If your have collected fund for this fundraiser, please send the envelopes in on Monday,
• We have our Dance enrichment on Monday. Check out our video on the right to get a sample of some of the Dance moves we are working on!

Have a warm weekend!

Week 26

It was great to see many of you at Parent Teacher Conferences. It was so helpful to talk about how your child is progressing and to make some plans as to how we will proceed from now on to continue the successes we've experienced this year.

On a separate note, I'd like to thank the Cohen and Harris families for buying our class book from the book fair. the kids are always excited to get new books to read!

For additional math support please try on the IXL Math Link this game:

• Units of Measurement, Game BB.3
• Equivalent Fractions, Game X.2

Here's what's happening next week: 

• We will have our Dance Enrichment on Monday.
• We will visit the Armory on Tuesday. 

Have an excellent weekend!

Week 25

How time flies! We have come to the end of the second semester. Report cards will be given out this Wednesday and Parent Teacher Conferences will take place on Thursday. If you have not signed up for a conference yet and are interested in doing so, please return the PTC request form that was given out on Wednesday.  Children who have turned in an request have already been given appointment times. You will find it in your child's homework sheet from this week in the weekly comments box.

In math, we have begun a unit on Measurement. Time and clocks are the first lessons in this unit. To give your child extra practice, try the games under the Time section (scroll down the middle column). Games T.3, T.5 and T.7 are the most helpful.

Here's what to expect for next week:

• We will have Dance on Monday. Please have your child dressed for movement. 
• Thursday will be a half day for Parent Teacher Conferences. Children will be dismissed at 11:30 am. 

Finally, we want to thank everyone who came in for Family Friday. The children really enjoyed sharing their biography project with you. 

Have a cozy weekend!

Week 23 and MidWinter Recess

 This week started with out Dance Enrichment which has been very fun for all of us! We have been enjoying many dances from Aron's the world and we today we got to try a little meringue.

Here's what to expect this week:

• We will meet with our Buddies on Tuesday. We will share a Valentine' Day craft with them. Some children have planned to share Valentine's with classmates. Please keep in mind that we have 28 students.
• We will finish our math work with Comparing Fractions by Friday. To help your child with more support in mastering this challenging skill, try the followinggames on our IXL math games link:

Equivalent Fractions games X.1 and X.3
Comparing Fractions games Y.1,  Y.2,  Y.6  and Y.12

• Schools will be closed for MidWinters Recess from February 20 to February 24.

Have a relaxing and warm recess!

Week 22

Thank you for coming into Family Friday this week! The flags turned out great! Once the flags are mounted in a frame, it will become a gorgeous collage. I look forward to displaying our work at the Art Auction.

Your child has the Chapter 8 math test returned to them today. While many children are grasping the concept of a fraction, this concept is a challenging one since children are being challenged to think of numbers that are parts and different than regular counting numbers in many ways.

There are some games on the IXL Math games link that will be helpful to anyone who needs some extra practice. When you click on the link, look on the section on the right hand side called UNDERSTANDING FRACTIONS. The games that best support our learning are:

• W. 1
• W. 7
• W. 8
• W. 12
• W. 17 
• W. 18

Here's what to expect for next week:

• Please keep in mind that we will have Dance again on Monday. encourage your child to dress comfortably for movement and remind girls not to wear tights. 

Have a beautiful weekend!

Week 21 and 22

This week the Third Grade began their Dance enrichment with Brooklyn Arts Exchange (BAX). We had a great time as Maira, our teaching artist walked us through some movements in dances from different cultures. This enrichment will take place every Monday from now on. Please encourage your child to wear clothing that would allow them to move easily on these day. Avoid tight clothes like jeans and stockings. Students will go barefoot for safety reasons, so girls should avoid wearing tights on Monday since they would removed for Dance.

Here's what to look forward to for the rest of this week and the next week:

• We will have our Math test on Thursday. This will bring an end to our work with Chapter eight but we will continue working with fractions in Chapter 9. In the next chapter, our focus will be in comparing fractions by looking more closely at the way a denominator affects the size of a piece and how a numerator can change the quantity of a fraction. 
• On Friday, we will have Family Friday. By now, our class parents have reached out to you regarding the class craft for the Winter Auction. We will work on a collage with flag from around the world. Please look out for a notice regarding this in your child's folder tomorrow.
• We will have our second session of BAX Dance on Monday, Feb. 6.
• We will be heading to the Armory on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

Have an excellent week and weekend!

Week 20

We are almost through our first month of 2017. How time flies! In these weeks we have started some exciting new units.

Fractions have been introduced in Math and children as learning the challenging concept of parts to whole. While many children can name examples of fractions, they have a more challenging time defining the what the fraction is and understanding what the numbers represent. We will work with many models and concrete examples of fractions so that we can build a better understanding of this math.

We also have begun our work on China in Social Studies. This unit allows us to apply the concept of culture to learning about a specific country. We started our learning with the our trip to Chen Dance Center, where we explored the unique language that is based on characters and not an alphabet. We will continue our learning by exploring the resources and contributions of this country. We've almost finish assembling out salt dough maps and will dive deeper into researching about the famous landmarks of vast land.

Opinion writing is a favorite unit amongst our children as they get to share all their strongest opinions! We will teach children how to clearly support their thinking and to organize this into a written essay.

Here's what else will happen next week:

• We are visiting the Armory on Tuesday. Please encourage your child to wear sneakers for running.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 19:

Thanks for coming in for Family Friday this week. It was a packed house but we had a great time showing off our Shelters from our Culture Unit and our published Information Books. We hope we were able to share our knowledge and you left with a some new fun facts.

Here's what to expect for next week:

• School will be closed on Monday for Martin Luther King's Birthday. 
• We are headed to Chen Dance Center on Tuesday. Children will be back in time for lunch. Please make sure your child is prepared for walking. 

Have a beautiful weekend!

Week 18: Welcome Back

Happy New Year! We returned from a relaxing and fun recess ready to start 2017. Many kids came back and were resolved to continue their good progress and have even more success in this upcoming year!

Here's what to expect for the next week:

• We are starting our annual school Readathon. Your child received the Read-a-thon packet with the record sheets and the sponsor sheets before the Winter Recess and were strongly advised to keep it in the homework folder. Students also received instruction for the bookmark contest. 
• In reading, children will use their prior learning in fiction and nonfiction to help them read with their book clubs. This exciting unit is often a lot of fun but requires children to take charge of their reading life. They will read the same text as their group and set goal for how many pages they read together. On designated days, they will meet to discuss their reading and talk about ideas they are making as they read. Students will select books from the mystery genre in the first three weeks then later select books in the biography genre in the following weeks. 
• We are heading to the Armory on Tuesday. Please make sure your child wears running shoes for this session. 
• Children will show off their Culture Shelters on Family Friday. We will also make snowflakes as part of a school wide project. 
• The unit 6 Math test will be given on Friday.