Exciting Day!

We had an exciting day in third grade!

First, we had a guest come in to teach us how to draw maps of Needham! Wait until you see the results. Click here to see some of our young cartographers at work.

Next, we went on a parade around the building to show off our awesome vocabulary costumes! We impressed many people with our knowledge of language!

We ended our day with a fun Halloween party. Thanks so much to Mrs. Perkins for helping out. Thanks a million to Mrs. Donovan and Mrs. Shapiro for organizing the entire event.

Have a fun and safe weekend. Happy Halloween!

Regrouping

Yes, the time has come. We are reviewing addition with regrouping. Although it may feel like torture to some children, they are doing quite well. We are even venturing into regrouping with 3 digit numbers...

As you are working with your children, remember that math instruction has changed since we were in elementary school. You probably know regrouping as carrying.
"5 + 9 = 14. Put down the 4, carry the 1..." Children can still solve addition problems this way. The only thing different for that method, is that we call it regrouping. They don't carry the one, they regroup the 10 (or the hundred).

There are two major challenges with regrouping. First, it's important that children have lined up the numbers properly. The digits in the hundreds place, tens place and ones place need to be lined up. It's not accurate to combine 3 from the ones place with 4 from the tens place. Also, children tend to forget that the little 1 they are "regrouping" is really a ten. It's important for them to remember that so they can develop a sense of the numbers.

As always, don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, comments or concerns.

:o)M

Little Red Schoolhouse

Hopefully you have heard about our wonderful trip to the schoolhouse! We had a blast! The children really got into the spirit of things. I worked really hard to stay in role. Apparently I did okay with that because when I asked children to compare school today to school in 1850, many of them mentioned the "strict" teacher in 1850. You can find their completed venn diagrams in their folders this afternoon.

Special thanks to Lauren Zalkind, Jane Donovan and Anne Nydam for joining us as chaperones!

Click here to see photographs of our exciting day!

Timed Addition Quizzes

I was unable to correct the quizzes in time for children to bring them home today. Third grade mathematicians will find the corrected quizzes in their folders before tomorrow afternoon. Happy studying! :o)

Spelling Words

Just a reminder. Most students from Room 221 will be bringing home words to study tonight. There is a quiz on Friday. A few children have demonstrated mastery of the sight words third grade requires. These children will not be bringing home new words. They are taking on extended vocabulary and spelling challenges at school.

Word of the Week

Last's week word was:

genius - someone who is incredibly smart

This week's word:

scallion - a green vegetable that tastes similar to an onion

Try using these words throughout the week!

Homophones

We added to our Word Wall again today! Our Word Wall consists of homophones that are commonly misspelled. A homophone is a word that sounds like another word, but has a different meaning and is spelled differently.

I updated a paper copy and sent it home in folders this afternoon. Keep it where your child does homework for easy reference. Once a homophone is on the Word Wall, I expect it to be spelled correctly in children's work.

We learned two new sets today:

son - a male child

sun - the star in the universe that provides us with daylight and warmth

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some - a collection of something

sum - an answer to an addition problem; an amount of money

Spelling Words

Third graders brought home spelling words today. They should study 5-10 minutes each night. Please read the yellow letter in their folder explaining our revised spelling program.

Bike Rodeo!

I forgot to remind the children that the bike rodeo is tomorrow! Their bikes can be brought to the gymnasium this afternoon or tomorrow morning. Mr. Brenheiser will have signs on the walls indicating where the bikes from each class should go. Thanks for your help! :o)

Rounding

Yesterday we began learning how to round numbers to the nearest ten. The children began to understand that sometimes you need to count with precise accuracy, but other times you can make an estimate. In situations that require only an estimate we round numbers. We looked at a number line so we could visibly see which multiples of 10 (the numbers you count when counting by 10) are closest to each number. I directly taught the children that numbers with 5 in the ones place always round up.

You can practice rounding to the nearest 10 at home! Ask your child to round 67 to the nearest 10. (67 rounds up to 70.) Or try 21. (21 rounds down to 20.)

This morning we practiced rounding to the nearest 100. When we round to the nearest hundred we look at the tens place to see which multiple of 100 is closest to the number. Just like rounding to the nearest 10 - numbers with 5 or higher in the tens place always round up. Numbers with 4,3,2,1 in the tens place always round down.

The trickiest part for some children is figuring out what the choices are. For example, if I am rounding 361 to the nearest hundred, I need to find the closest multiples of 100. Children need to know that 361 is between 300 and 400. Once they have determined this, they can see that 361 rounds to 400 because there is a 6 in the tens place.

Happy rounding! :o)

Weekend Adventure

You should find another "Weekend Adventure" assignment in your child's folder today. Third grade writers should write a paragraph about something they do over the weekend. Please remember, this paragraph is due on Tuesday. I do not expect children to complete the assignment over the weekend. I give it to them so they can if it is convenient for your family.

This week's FCAs are:

Small moment - The children should write about a small moment in time. It could be 10 minutes, or even 3 minutes of their day. They should not write about their entire day, or even an hour. For example, jumping in the leaves is a small moment. Fall clean up day is not. We call the big topic (not a small moment) a "watermelon." We call small moments a "seed." We spent more time talking about this in class this week. You should see improvement in topic selection. However, if you're child does choose a "watermelon" topic, (like fall cleanup), you can encourage them to think of a small moment that happened during that time.

3+ specific details - Third grade writers should include at least 3 specific details telling about their topic. The details and the topic sentence should be about the same thing.

Capitalization and punctuation - Third grade writers should begin every sentence with a capital and end every sentence with punctuation. (This should become more and more automatic.)

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, comments or concerns you might have,

Enjoy your weekend! :o)

Reflection Letters

Unfortunately, reflection letters did not make it into our schedule this morning. We will be sure to write to you next Friday. Sorry!

New Dictionaries!

Thank you so much to the Needham Rotary Club! This morning each student received his/her very own dictionary - inscribed with their name. The looks on the children's faces were priceless. Each child was truly excited. They can't wait to share them with you. We love words! :o)

Scholastic Book Clubs

Just a reminder - Scholastic Book Club orders are due tomorrow - Wednesday,
October 13.

I am From... Poems

Click here to hear your child read their "I am From..." poem as you admire their creative self portrait.

Thanks to Mrs. Martell for all her support with technology!

Historical Tour of Needham

Thanks so much to Mrs. Kathy Martell for guiding us on an awesome historical tour of Needham. Thank you also to Terri at Volante Farms for her willingness to share the history of the last working farm in Needham. The children brought home packets with their drawings and writing of all they learned. Part of their homework is to share at least 2 facts they learned with you this evening.

Click here to see photos from our trip.

Weekend Adventure

You should find a "Weekend Adventure" assignment in your child's folder this weekend. Third grade writers should write a paragraph about something they do over the weekend. Please remember, this paragraph is due on Wednesday. I do not expect children to complete the assignment over the weekend, I just give it to them so they can if it is convenient for your family.

This week's FCAs are:

Small moment - The children should write about a small moment in time. It could be 10minutes, or even 3 minutes of their day. They should not write about their entire day, or even an hour. For example, jumping in the leaves is a small moment. Fall clean up day is not. We call the big topic (not a small moment) a "watermelon." We call small moments a "seed."

3+ specific details - Third grade writers should include at least 3 specific details telling about their topic. The details and the topic sentence should be about the same thing.

Capitalization and punctuation - Third grade writers should begin every sentence with a capital and end every sentence with punctuation.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, comments or concerns you might have,

Enjoy your weekend! :o)

Pico Ferme Nada

We played a great game at Morning Meeting that you can play at home. It's called "Pico, Ferme, Nada." One player thinks of a three digit number (although you can play with as many digits as you'd like). The other player(s) try to guess what the number is. The player who chooses the number tells the guessers if they are right using the words pico, ferme, nada.

Pico means that the digit is in the number and it's in the right place.
Ferme means that the digit is in the number, but it's in a different place (therefore having a different value).
Nada means that the digit is not in the number at all.

For example, the person thinking of the number comes up with 784. They don't tell the other players. The other players start guessing. Perhaps they guess 743.

7 is pico because it's in the right place.
4 is ferme because it's in the number, but in the wrong place.
3 is nada because it's not in the number at all.

The players then use their reasoning skills to make a new guess.

I know this sounds a little complicated, but the kids know how to play. Let them teach you! It's lots of fun. ;o)

Fundations

Our spelling program follows the phonics concepts and skills taught in the Fundations program. Your children have been working with Fundations since kindergarten. We began Unit 1 this week.

The review concepts for the first unit are:
• closed syllable
This syllable has only one vowel and that vowel is followed by one or more consonants. (ex. at, itch, scram) The vowel sound is always short.
• spelling of the /k/ sound
Rule: At the end of one syllable words, ck is used immediately after short vowels
(sick). If there is another consonant after the short vowel, you only use the k (milk). The letter c is most often used at the beginning of the word and the letter k is most often used at the end of the word.

The new concepts for the first unit are:
• tch sounds like /ch/ and is used in spelling after a short vowel (catch)

As we practice and review new concepts I will begin holding children accountable for using the phonetic rules in their own writing.

Wonderful Words

Each day a member of the Room 221 community is the "Word Wizard." The Word Wizard collects new words that he/she hears when the class is in a lesson, listening to a story, or having a discussion. At the end of the day, many of the words are shared. They are then put in our word jar. (Ask your child about the chapter book "Donovan's Word Jar" by, Monalisa Degross.)

Every week the class will vote on one word to highlight. This word will be placed in large letters on the wall for all children to see. We will challenge ourselves to use the highlighted words whenever possible. This will make the words part of our standard vocabulary.

I plan to post on the blog each time we choose new words so you can try using the words at home!I will post the third grade definitions that we came up with.

Last week's word was:

serendipity - a happy accident

This week's word is:

extinct - a group of animals that no longer exist because they all died out

Homophones

Today we add to our Word Wall for the first time! Our Word Wall consists of homophones that are commonly misspelled. A homophone is a word that sounds like another word, but has a different meaning and is spelled differently. We will learn three sets today:

know - when you understand something completely

no - a negative response to a question, a reference that something is not true, rejection of something, or denial of permission
***********************************
which - used to ask a question when there are several possible answers

witch - a female that is thought to possess magical or evil powers
***********************************
right - something that is correct; also the opposite of left

write - create words or letters on paper with a pen or pencil

Weekend Adventure

I forgot to put the weekend adventure homework in children's folders today. If your child would like work on it over the weekend, the FCAs are:


(TS) topic sentence
(3+SD) 3 or more special details
capitals and punctuation

Happy writing!

Learning Buddies

Ask your third grader about their learning buddy! This afternoon we met first graders from Mrs. Schwarm's room and fourth/fifth graders from Mrs. Abadon/Mrs. Hoffman's room. We will be meeting together two-three times each month to learn together. Each child is assigned one or two partners that they will work with each time we meet.

It's important that learning buddies get to know each other, so we started by creating venn diagrams. The venn diagrams show ways that partners are similar and how they are different. Ask your third grade what they learned about their partners today!