One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the
shore. Andre Gide
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3C CLASS UPDATES & ANNOUNCEMENTS FALL 2009
September 29, 2009
Greetings All.
Following are Class Updates & Announcements. Check out your child's Take Home
Tuesday for important notices and opportunities. This week's THT includes an
invitation for the 3C Social on October 7th. You can RSVP to Rachel Laser
(Xander's mom) and let her know what you plan to take. laser@thirdway.org
Have a great week!
RELIEF MAPS PROJECT (Social Studies/Arts Integration)
Thanks for sending in the flour and salt with youR child so that our "pastry
chefs" (Tina/Schuyler's and Sarah/Athena's moms) could get together and make
massive quantities of the Salt Dough for the project.
LANGUAGE ARTS
Reading and Writing Workshops: Purposeful Reading, Choosing Just Right Books,
Genres, Fiction/Non-Fiction are among the ongoing Reading Workshop topics and
lessons. Students are taking notes, and writing letters about their reading
in their Reading Journals. students are writing a persuasive piece about "Why
We Should Have Fuzzy Buddy Day". (Ask your third grader about this.) In
addition, we are focusing on mechanics and editing for the Janney Dispatch.
Script (aka Handwriting, Cursive)
Our students are continuing in their workbooks. As they complete ,
reviewing and practicing before moving on to u y i and j. We encourage them
to practice at home as they learn to write new letters in script.
Ongoing LA Notes:
As we conduct our all-school reading assessments, students are
continuing to practice and strengthen reading and writing skills and
strategies. Students make daily entries in their journals, including: a
variety of meaningful lists and responses: from brainstorming "Topics I Know
About" and Class Rules, to responding to, and interpreting, quotes and poetry.
Students brainstorm such topics as "Ways We Choose Books", "Genres We Like to
Read", "How to Buzz Effectively". They have written letters and a baseline
piece on "What Community Means to Me".
Word study has begun. Watch for Word Sorts and related projects your third
graders will be bringing home for homework. Our class is also memorizing key
lines from meaningful poems and quotes. Ask your third grader to tell you the
final lines to “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost.
MATH: Unit 1
Students had their first Unit Assessment this week. To prepare, we reviewed
the concepts and related questions in class, and students brought home a Study
Guide. This assessment has a variety of elements: Slate, written, oral,
self-assessment and open response questions.
The focus of unit one is to establish routines to be used all year to promote
an active and cooperative learning environment. The unit has four main areas
of focus: Explore patterns on number grids; Review telling time, measuring
lengths, and using calculators; Review data concepts and make predictions
based on data; and explores equivalent names for numbers. We are asking
students to do the related Home Links (in the book) for homework after each
lesson and bring the book back each day.
Next Up: Unit 2 Adding and Subtracting Whole Numbers
SOCIAL STUDIES
In Social Studies, students have begun exploring the history, economy and
government of Washington, D.C. They are building and painting Relief Maps out
of the homemade clay. This 3-D Relief Map Project is a hands-on activity to
enrich our third graders' Social Studies.
SCIENCE Structures of Life is the Science focus. Students have begun the
related vocabulary, including: organisms, environment and cells and will soon
start on a fun activity - designing 3-D Quad Pods. The crayfish are in! Two
survived the trip, but others didn't. The class will be observing them and
learning to care for them as part of their Structures of Life studies.
Room Parents: Thanks to all for supporting our Room Parents Team. Our head
Room Parent is Rachel (Xander's mom) Laser. If you'd like to volunteer, she
can be reached at laser@thirdway.org.
Watch this space for future updates.
"The very spring and root of honesty and virtue lie in a good education."
(Plutarch, AD46-120)
Fall Letter
Thanks to all for your thoughtful letters about your third graders. It's
great to have met so many of you during the morning Jamboree.
Our class’s guiding principles are Respect, Responsibility, Collaboration,
Communication and Safety. At the beginning of each year, we introduce our
students to their teachers and classmates. Students are learning how to take
care of their materials and classroom, make transitions and follow routines
that they will use throughout the school year. When the times for each
special class (Spanish, Library, Music, Art, PE) are finalized, we will send
a copy of the class schedule home to you.
Students are getting to know each other through activities such as sharing,
photographs, Math "Numbers Museum", collaboration and greetings. They have
desks and bins this year, and they are learning to organize and take care of
their materials. We also got to know our Book Buddies class - the second
graders of Miss Bigelow’s class. We also are thrilled to have Mrs. Walters
working in our classroom from time to time.
Our third graders have started: writing in their Daily Journals, exploring
numbers in their lives, and learning script. They are now using their Homework
Books to write down assignments each day and check them off as each task is
completed. Students are exploring their textbooks and workbooks as each
subject is introduced. For example, our 3rd graders took their Student
Reference Books (Math SRBs) home on Monday 8/31. Students will be selecting
Study Buddies whom they can rely on. They will write down their Study
Buddies’ phone numbers so they can call when
they’re absent or need clarification.
Communication is a very important part of our Janney community of learners.
We encourage our third graders to ask questions and share what they are
learning. As they become more and more independent and responsible for their
work and belongings, we encourage parents to ask your third grader to explain
and express their learning to you. This is a wonderful class and I look
forward to working with you. Thank you all for supporting your third grader's
education.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Carpousis
GRADE 3 WELCOME LETTER
August 2009
Dear 3rd grade Students and Parents:
We are very pleased that the school year is here. This will be another
exciting year at Janney - with many new things to learn and goals to accomplish.
We will work together as a team to make this a wonderful learning experience
for all.
Janney prides itself as a community of learners that promotes and practices
respect, responsibility, safety, collaboration and communication. We honor
these values in all of our classrooms.
This year, our third graders will discover and appreciate their own voices,
listen to others, express themselves verbally and in writing, think
critically, solve problems in creative ways, and work cooperatively with
others. They will learn with purpose and clear expectations.
It’s a big transition coming off of a long summer vacation. Always make sure
your child gets enough sleep, so s/he can do her/his best during the day.
Your child should eat a healthy breakfast and bring a snack for midmorning
break. Watch for more information in your 3rd grader’s Take Home Tuesday.
This should be a challenging, productive and rewarding school year as we work
together over the next year.
Welcome to 3rd grade!
The 3rd Grade Team
Check out CLASS CALENDAR for upcoming activities and events.
END 3c Class Announcements & Updates
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