On Friday we welcomed many of our grandparents into the classroom for some fun and games. Our first activity the kids were asked to build the tallest tower out of 15 pieces of spaghetti and a normal sized marshmallow had to sit on top. Grandparents were able to give input and help the groups build their towers. After towers, we played a math game and ended the day with some fun interviewing about grandparent's lives and the past. Grandparent's Day is always one of my favorite days of the year!
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Good Morning! We had a great week this week! We learned many of our procedures, started our first math chapter in place value, and had our first spelling test. The students are working into routines and learning is happening! I am very proud of how well the students have been working and striving to do their best. This upcoming week we will be working all subjects and continuing to establish solid routines so our classroom runs smoothly while learning and having fun!
Reading: This week we will read the story The Trial of Cardigan Jones, which is a story about an elephant who is accused of stealing and eating a pie from a neighbors windowsill. Our comprehension strategy will focus on character traits, but we will also be reviewing story structure as well. Math: We will continue to work on place value, this week I plan on introducing rounding to the nearest 10 and 100. This is usually a tricky skill and takes a lot of practice. Spelling: We took our first spelling test on Friday as well as a pretest for next week. If your child scores a 100% on the pretest they will be given an alternative list of words on Monday. Please be aware as these words aren't as of yet posted on the spelling page, I am working on making lists. Language and Writing: We will be establishing writer's workshop this week and starting our short mini-lesson in language. Our focus this week will be nouns, and working into a routine with writing daily. Social Studies: We will continue to work on building a classroom community and understanding good character traits. Below I am posting pictures from this week. We did a couple of different group activities, one called Saving Fred. The kids had to plan as a group how to save the gummy worm whose boat had capsized and his life preserver (gummy life saver) was stuck underneath. The kids had a fun time seeing if their plan worked or if they had to change ideas to make it work better. We also played Chutes and Ladders or Candyland to help us review the classroom procedures. Kids had to answer a question about specific classroom procedures, then they could take their turn in the game. Good Afternoon Families! We are off to a great start in third grade and I am looking forward to a full week with our students. This week we will be spending a lot of time working on learning routines, introducing beginning of the year unit of studies and working into a full week schedule. I would like to highlight several areas where I receive questions each year, and give you a glance at where we are headed in our units of study over the next week.
Reading: In reading this week we will introduce our first series story A Fine, Fine School. We will spend time talking about story elements and being able to identify characters, setting, conflict, and resolution in a story. We will also be looking at how illustrations within the story help enhance our understanding of the text. The class will also be working on establishing routines that will be used daily during our guided reading station time. We will be learning how to choose good fit books, when to abandon a book, how to choose a place to sit within the classroom to be a successful reader. Math: Our first unit in math will cover place value and rounding. Rounding is a brand new skill for third grade and can be pretty tricky. We will spend quite a bit of time working in smaller groups so I can work with students one on one to make sure they are understanding the concepts within the chapter. I also like to give each of the kiddos a pre-test to see what they already know, areas where they might have some idea of what is going on, and areas that are completely foreign to them. This helps me to drive my instruction and lessons that I plan for the kids. From the pre-test I have the students make goals for their learning during the chapter and then we follow up at the end to see if we have mastered the learning targets or if we need to revisit certain areas before moving on. Spelling: Our first spelling list was passed out on Friday. Spelling lists can always be found on our weebly home page and a document for the year is on the spelling page of our website. We will test over lesson 1 this coming Friday. I will be looking at spellers over the next couple of weeks to see if I need to differentiate the list according to the students ability. If I change lists, I will contact parents to let them know. Social Studies: Third grade spends the first semester learning Social Studies concepts and second semester Science. Our first unit is over building a classroom community. We work on character traits, appropriate ways to treat our friends, and how to blossom in the classroom. We will then move into types of communities and look in depth at the community of Tonganoxie. Weebly and Remind101: I do most of my communicating through our weebly page and the Remind101 app. You may join weebly by going to www.tesmillersminutes.weebly.com. At the top of the page is a place to subscribe. Type in your email and they will send you a confirmation. You will then receive a notice when our weebly page has been updated. I put our newsletters on weebly, spelling lists, pictures of classroom activities, and classroom information can be found on the website. Remind101 is a quick announcement app that I have used over the last several years. It allows me to send out quick reminders and update everyone on important information quickly. You can text @6f47h6 to 81010 and that will get you connected. Thank you to all of you who asked about Courtney and her move to Emporia. It went smoothly and she is off to a great start. Thank you for understanding my need to go with her. And I am happy to say...no tears...yet. Have a wonderful week and if you have any questions feel free to contact me. To Do Your Best, You Have To Be Your Best #WOOOO!!! Mrs. Miller Happy Easter! What a wonderful and eventful day! I celebrated with my church family and then hosted my family for Easter dinner at my house, then took a nap! We have a busy month ahead of us. Thankfully we have the ELA testing done and have a week before math testing on April 10th & 11th. We have quite a few other fun trips and activities coming up in the next couple of weeks.
FFA Farm Day: April 12th the entire third grade will head over to the Leavenworth County Fair grounds for a day at the farm. The kids will be learning about how to taking care of, manage, and love animals on the farm. The high school FFA class sponsors this event and it is always a fun day for all those involved. Please make sure your child is dressed appropriate for the day. Mornings especially tend to be chilly and we will be outside from 8:30-1:00 when we return to school. Parents are always welcome to come and join us for lunch that day. Museum at Prairie Fire: April 27th we will load the buses and head to the Museum at Prairie Fire. This is our grand finale of field trips and will take us on an adventure back in time as we learn about the largest dinosaurs on earth. This trip is a fun filled hands on learning experience that the kiddos will talk about for days to come. We love to have lots of parents to help supervise and enjoy the festivities with us on this day. Please see the field trip note that went home last week to get further details about the trip. In class this week we will be working on measurement and graphing in math, continuing to learn about dangerous storms and creating a power point about the storms. In reading the class will be reading a silly tale about a wood man that travels the country and meets many different people in his adventure. Have a great rest of your weekend and I will see your kids tomorrow! Mrs. Miller What a crazy weather week! I was glad to be back in the classroom today, focused on learning. We have a few very busy weeks coming up to get ourselves ready for state assessments before spring break. I have noticed a few areas that I am concerned with. Math fact memorization is a struggle for all of my students, and they are not taking it seriously when we practice in class. I try to use songs and other ways that are engaging, however I have noticed that overall the kiddos are not taking this seriously. So, I am changing it up a little bit and going back to some old school practice. Starting next week we will be taking timed math facts tests. We will start easy with 0's & 1's. Once they pass a level, they will move up. We will be working for ice cream sundaes that we will build on the last week of school. Each couple of levels will earn each child another "level" of their sundae until they have unlimited toppings with the memorization of all their facts.
This weeks spelling test will be held Tuesday of next week. We will continue this pattern as it is working well for our class. Please continue to read and have the kiddos get on reflex at home as well. Next week I will need to be gone on Thursday and Friday afternoon for doctor appointments for my son and myself. I tried to get them on the same day...but that didn't work. I hate being gone, but sometimes we have to do what needs to be done. I am looking forward to a little bit warmer weather next week. Enjoy your weekend! Missy Miller Good Morning! We have quite a lot going on in third grade. I am a little behind as I had a couple days last week I had to be gone with kidney stones. There are several notes coming home today.
Dollar Donut Day: This fundraiser helps our IDEA class with projects for our school. Sheets are due by February 28th. Conference Times: Notes with your scheduled conference times will be coming home today as well. If you were not scheduled during the first conference time, then a time has been selected for you. I am looking forward to meeting with all of you and discussing how your child is doing in class. Valentine List: A class list is going home today with the names of our classmates. Please send in Valentine's card next Tuesday. We will make containers in class. Valentine's Party: Our party is scheduled for next Tuesday, February 13th from 8:30-9:00. I have a few parents who have volunteered to provide donuts, and protein snacks. I could still use someone to volunteer for a drink. We have 27 kiddos in class. PTC Carnival: The school carnival is this weekend. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend as my son has his league wrestling tournament this weekend. PTC is still looking for volunteers to fill in during the afternoon. Pencil Sharpener: Our class is now on it's third pencil sharpener. Your child might want to invest in a handheld sharpener, or some mechanical pencils as sharpeners are becoming hard to find in the building at this time of the year. I think that is it for right now. I will see all of you next week during conferences! Have a great afternoon! Mrs. Miller Good Morning! I am praying that all our kiddos and families are staying well with all the crud that has been floating around. We are taking precautions in the classroom with antibacterial goo for our hands, and washing our desks. We have quite a few activities coming up this week in class as well as school wide. I will try to highlight below so you know what's happening in the third grade this week!
Music Program: This Thursday evening our third graders will be sharing their hard work and talents with the third grade music program. Students need to report to our classroom at 7:15. The program will start at 7:30. Please keep your child's coat with you in the gym as they will be released from the gym to their parents and will not be returning to the classroom. Valentine's Party: The Valentine's Party will be held on Tuesday, February 13th at 8:30 a.m. I am looking for a volunteer to help call parents and set up our activities for that morning. If you are willing please let me know and I will get a list of volunteers out to you. Math Fact Practice: We have been working on multiplication for awhile now, and I have noticed that the kiddos are still struggling with memorization of their multiplication facts. Especially the higher digit facts. We have a resource called Relex. This is a program purchased by the school that students can work on from home or at school. The math challenges are set up in game format for the kids to work through memorizing all their facts. Students can access the program by going to www.reflexmath.com. Our classroom username is mmiller3, and the kiddos should know the next steps to get onto the program. Well, I am going to sign off for now as my sweet class will be arriving in just a few minutes. Thanks! Missy Miller Good Morning Families!! It has been a cold several days and we are trying to get back into routine after our snow days. With that being said, our testing schedule for reading comprehension and spelling may be off for awhile. The spelling test will be next Tuesday and reading comprehension will be on Monday. The spelling change will follow us through conferences.
I am keeping it short today as I have lots to do and catch up on as well. Stay warm and see you all soon! Mrs. Miller Happy New Year!! Welcome to 2018. This semester will fly by and your sweet 3rd graders will blossom and become 4th graders. In class we will be setting goals for this semester, relearning and practicing routines, and setting the stage for State Assessments later in the spring. Below is a quick glimpse of the up coming week and half.
Snacks: We will continue to have a snack mid-morning during the second semester. I found that it is much easier for each child to bring their own individual snack. It cuts down on the time spent passing snacks out, and helps with those who have food limitations for braces or allergies. If your child would like a snack in the morning they are welcome to bring a healthy snack in their backpack to eat during the appropriate time frame. MAP Testing: Next week we will complete our second round of MAP (Measures of Academic Performance) testing. I will have results during conference times in February. Grade Cards: 2nd quarter grade cards will be available on Skyward today. Please check out how your child did during the 1st semester and help them to set smart goals for the 2nd semester. Math: We will be learning about several different properties of multiplication in the next couple of weeks. We will have some great hands on activities to teach the kiddos how to break larger numbers apart and use smaller facts to solve problems. We will also be switching over to multiplication practice in our Reflex program that works specifically with memorizing math facts. Be looking for an all school incentive program geared around Reflex goals and accomplishments. Reading: Before break I benchmarked all the kiddos to see how they have grown since September. I was very happy with the results and will be sharing those results at conference time. This week we will be working on understanding the author's purpose for writing the text. We will also be reviewing expectations for our Daily 5 rotations and guided reading rotations. I will start reading groups back up late next week after the kiddos have had a good week of practice reestablishing routines in the classroom. Science: This semester we will be focused on science. Our first unit is called Animals. We will be learning about animal adaptations, how they survive within the habitat they live in, and we will be researching an animal of choice and creating an animal museum in our third grade hallway. The students will also be working on writing a pretty in depth research paper based off the animal that they researched. This is one of our favorite activities of the year. Good Morning Friends,
We are off to a great start this Monday morning. The class spent our math time learning about the basics of division. This is a hard concept and confuses some, especially after just learning the foundations of multiplication. However, once the students understand that multiplication and division can be used together as inverse operations, their little minds start to thrive. The class will continue to work with non-fiction text this week during reading. We will be learning about how technology has changed many sports by allowing equipment to improve to protect athletes. For example, the football helmet was just an old piece of leather, and now it has special padding and provisions to protect the heads of those playing the sport. In social studies we will continue to learn about economics and how money is used and earned. Specifically this week, the students will be learning about the differences between goods and services, consumers and producers, and how they play a role in our economy. A couple of weeks ago we started rotating classes during our 30 minute math MTSS time to meet the needs of all students. This rotation time allows for students to revisit or extend concepts previously learned in third grade. I am excited to announce that today we will start this same concept with reading. Our team has gone through all the MAP assessment scores and determined that our lowest area for comprehension is when we read informational text. Each of the 6 teachers will be addressing informational text during the next several weeks and working on deepening the understanding for each student. Within those six classes we are also breaking out specific skills as well. For example, there are several students who need a deeper understanding of phonemic awareness and how letters work together to form words. Another group will be working on developing their fluency when reading, and a third group will work on specific vocabulary development. These groups have been formed reflecting the MAP scores and in some cases we have test more specific skills (like the phonics, and fluency). During this 30 minute time frame you can know that your child will be getting what they need to fill in cracks or strengthen their overall reading and comprehension skills. |
Mrs. MillerI am Missy Miller and I teach third grade at Tonganoxie Elementary School. This week's spelling:Lesson 4
1. load 2. open 3. told 4. yellow 5. soak 6. shadow 7. foam 8. follow 9. glow 10. sold 11. window 12. coach 13. almost 14. throat 15. most 16. cold Challenge 17. tomorrow 18. sailboats Archives
September 2019
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