January 22 Scholastic Book Orders Due
January 23 The Little Mermaid
January 25 February Lunch Orders Due
Homework - More details posted on the Homework Page
1. Read for at least 20 minutes per day and fill out your reading log each night. Your parents must sign your reading log.
2. Complete your math homework.
Upcoming Out and Abouts
We will get to see Luella in the Theatre in the Grove's performance of The Little Mermaid! We will join Level 1 and the Puffins at the Wednesday afternoon show.
Math Notes
This week in Third Grade Math, we will begin our formal introduction to multiplication and division. In this unit, students will develop an understanding of both operations by connecting their work to a variety of visual models, mostly in the context of story problems. Although students will be expected to develop proficiency with multiplication facts through 10, knowing when to multiply and when to divide will be the focus of our investigations.
For homework, please complete the Subtraction Fluency Checkup with your child. Our goal is for students to complete all 30 subtraction facts in about 3 minutes. If you child has not mastered these subtraction facts, please provide additional practice at home. You can create flashcards or find online games and worksheets to support fluency with basic addition and subtraction facts. Check out the 3rd grade math info on our class website for additional resources: http://theploverportal.weebly.com/links.html
This week in Fourth Grade Math, we will continue our new unit focusing on fractions and division. Using egg cartons as a model, your fourth grader will work this week on understanding, modeling, reading, writing, ordering, and comparing common fractions using concrete models (egg cartons) and visual representations (drawing egg cartons).
Questions/Comments/Concerns, please contact Becky at [email protected]
Weekly Review
Last week, we discussed the memoir Through My Eyes by Ruby Bridges. I also read Martin's Big Words by Doreen Rappaport to the class and we discussed the life of Martin Luther King Jr. Students reflected on the stories of these important figures through art and writing. Their thoughts and creative responses are on display in the hallway. This study prompted a renewed focus on kindness in our classroom. At Morning Meeting and Closing Meeting, we recognize people who help make a difference in our classroom by taking care of each other and classroom materials. Between now and Valentine's Day, the Plovers and the Puffins will be completing mini service projects and random acts of kindness to promote a sense of community and citizenship within the school.
In writing, students are working on developing creative and imaginative stories through our new "Story Workshop" model. During Story Workshop, students may work independently or in small groups to find story ideas through exploration with creative materials, like play doh, paper dolls, building blocks, LEGOs, animal figurines and natural materials. Students share their story ideas and work collaboratively to develop characters, settings and plots. It has been an exciting and motivating experience for all of our writers! Each student has their own writer's notebook for recording their ideas and stories, and many students have already filled several pages with writing!
Communication
Please contact me with any questions or concerns. Parents and students can e-mail me at [email protected]. You can also leave a voice message on the class phone, come into the classroom before or after school, or call me before 8PM at home.