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Welcome to a wonderful year filled with exciting academic, religious,
and social development for your child! It is a privilege to be teaching
third grade here at Holy Trinity. I am looking forward to a fun and
successful year working with you and your child.
Please take time to look through this packet and keep for future
reference. It outlines the goals, curriculum, activities, procedures, and
expectations for this year. A copy is also posted on my webpage.
My Goals
To provide a daily opportunity for students to learn more about Jesus
through the sacraments, scripture, liturgy and in service to others.
To help students develop a prayerful relationship with God.
To help students become more responsible and independent about their
studies.
To teach the skills necessary for students to make good choices, solve
problems, and work cooperatively with others to achieve a goal.
To help students see their mistakes as opportunities for growth and
learning.
To encourage students to be curious, to ask questions, seek answers and
enjoy the learning process.
Religion
Parents are always welcome to celebrate Mass with us. We will attend
Mass every Thursday at 8:15, except for the All-School Masses. Please check
your HTS handbook for those times and dates.
This year we will be using a new religion series that I am extremely
excited about. Faith First takes a spiral approach to teaching our students
the four pillars of the Catechism of the Catholic Church – Creed, Sacraments,
Morality, and Prayer - are taught and developed on every grade level every
year. Your child will come to understand what we believe as Catholics and
how to live out those beliefs. They will study the Apostles’ Creed, both
Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy, and the lives of St. Dominic Savio,
St. Bernadette, Father Damian, and Mother Theresa. Daily prayer and
reflection will help children develop a prayerful relationship with God. To
help motivate your child to want to learn more about their faith, I would
like to encourage you to visit with your child www.FaithFirst.com for the
online resources available to your family.
What the students learn in religion class will be interwoven with
other subjects throughout the day. We will discuss virtues such as courage,
compassion, honesty, fairness, and responsibility throughout the year and
learn to recognize examples in the Scriptures, literature and in our own
actions. We will begin the year with STEPS TO RESPECT lessons. These
lessons will help the children build friendships and manage conflicts. In
addition, students will plan and participate in many service projects this
year, including becoming prayer buddies for the four year old children in
HTCC and participating in a Baby Shower for Jesus .
Along with teaching Christian values, third graders will also
participate in the Second Step Program. Second Step is a school-wide program
designed to reduce impulsive and aggressive behaviors in children and
increase their level of social competence. It does this by teaching skills
in empathy, impulse control and anger management. Weekly lessons will help
students identify problems and find ways of solving them, thus helping them
to grow in their self-esteem.
Holy Trinity School and the parish support the position of the Church
that it is the right and responsibility of the parents to be the first to
instruct their children about the biology of human reproduction. The parish
provides many different resources to assist you in this process. Project
Genesis: God Created Families is the series we use in the third grade. The
children will learn that they are unique persons created in the image and
likeness of God, and that they are important members of your loving family.
They will learn that they are called by God to show love to others, and the
importance of keeping their bodies healthy through fitness, cleanliness and
safety.
Reading
We will be using the Scott Foresmen reading series. It is a well-
balanced series focusing on all aspects of our language: reading, writing,
and speaking. Throughout the year students will continue to broaden their
language skills and increase their abilities to apply those skills reading
good literature. Phonetic skills, word recognition strategies, reading
comprehension, and vocabulary are taught within a story structure. This
series also provides an integrated language and spelling text, which
reinforces newly taught skills from the readings. To increase interest and
participation, I will be utilizing a number of instructional approaches
including directed reading, shared reading, and independent reading.
Reading is truly the key for academic success. To promote the love
for reading, I have extend our reading program to include book chats,
independent reading time, as well as using a number of reading incentives.
In addition to using the basal reader, students will read five short chapter
books this year, the first of which is the delightful story, Freckle Juice.
We will discuss each book in a small group format. Book chats have always
been an enjoyable experience for my students. I scheduled the required
readings and book chats so that they will not overlap the parent-directed
Chat N’ Chew program. Please encourage your child to participate in the Chat
N’ Chew as well.
Our extended reading program also includes:
D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything And Read) - This is a daily independent reading time
where the students read quietly in the classroom from a book of their
choice.
Accelerated Reader is a school wide reading incentive program. Students read
books from the AR library then take short computer quizzes to test
comprehension. Students earn points based on the difficulty of the book
and their performance on the quiz. Incentives are offered to students
and the class according to the number of quizzes taken and/or points
accumulated. Students who complete at least two AR quizzes with scores
of 80% or better by the end of each month will be invited to join in a
class celebration.
Book It - Like previous years, students can also earn Book-It certificates
for reading outside the classroom. Students are required to read a
minimum of 4 hours outside the classroom each month (except in December)
to earn a Book-It certificate. Students will receive a reading log to
help them keep track of their reading time. The “Book It” program begins
in September and will run through April. In addition, each quarter
students will be require to complete one reading response.
The American Hero Hall of Fame - This biography project is one of the
highlights of the year you will not want to miss. For this project
students will read a biography on an American hero, write a report and
give an oral presentation for visiting parents. This project begins in
January, with presentations scheduled for the first week of March.
Nightly Reading - How does one become a better student? It’s easy! Nightly
reading is a wonderful lifelong habit and has been shown by many
different educational studies to be a major factor in a student’s
academic success. Reading provides opportunities for vocabulary growth
and continued learning. Ideally, reading should be enjoyable and hassle
free but even if your child is not a willing participant it is important
to set aside at least 15-20 minutes a night for reading time. Parents
are encouraged to read aloud to their children. This is a wonderful
chance to spend some quality time together and it also provides a
positive reading role
model.
Language
Our reading series provides a balanced language program. Students will
be provided with instructions on skills that they will use throughout the
year, including study skills, grammar, vocabulary development, paragraph
formation and other writing mechanics. Guided lessons at the beginning of
the year are aimed in helping students move beyond the simple “My cat is
nice” type of sentence to writing more interesting sentences that include
adjectives, adverbs and prepositions. In addition, I will model traits of
good writing in our weekly lessons, and give students many opportunities to
view excerpts of authors’ writings to spur ideas in their own work.
Throughout the year students will be given time to practice what they have
learned by participating in the DOL (Daily Oral Language) exercises, journals
and reports. Students will also give several oral presentations to build
communication skills. Most of the students’ writings will be kept in their
portfolios at school until the end of each quarter when parents will be given
an opportunity to preview them. The rest of their work will go home in their
Monday Folder.
Spelling
The goal of spelling instruction is for students to use their growing
understanding of the logic of spelling words and transfer these skills to
their written work.
Weekly spelling lists are composed of structurally related words from
our reading series. Each week the students will be given a pretest to assess
prior knowledge and a word list to study at home. I will modify spelling
lists according to individual needs. Students testing out on the pretest
will receive a new list to study. Weekly words, three challenge words and
two dictation sentences will make up the test given every Friday. Spelling
workbook pages that are assigned each week are graded on Thursday. Quarterly
grades are based on test average and points earned for completing assignments
on time. Please help your child develop good study habits by having them
review these words nightly.
Handwriting
This year the third grade students will shift from writing in
manuscript to cursive. We use the Zaner-Blaser Simplified text. To help ease
this transition, students will spend the first semester recognizing and
practicing writing all cursive letters. Those students who are ready will be
encouraged to write in cursive for their daily assignments. My goal is to
have all students reading and writing in cursive by January. Evaluations are
based on the overall neatness on daily work and the key elements of
legibility: size, shape, slant, space, and smoothness in writing.
Math
Students will continue to expand their understanding of our number
system and increase their computation skills working with whole numbers. We
will develop problem-solving skills based on a 5-step process: identifying
the problem, describe what is known, choosing a plan to solve the problem,
carrying out the plan, and checking to see if the plan worked. These same
skills will be applied not only to math problems, but to many different
situations.
We will begin our year reviewing basic facts, reading and constructing
graphs, adding and subtracting 2-3 digit numbers with regrouping, and then
progress to the concepts of multiplication, division, fractions, and
decimals. Multiplication will take center stage in December. There are many
tricks I use to help students learn the multiplication facts, all of which
are based on one’s ability to add numbers quickly. Generally, students who
have mastered the basic addition facts will find learning the multiplication
facts easy. Please encourage your child to practice basic addition and
subtraction facts nightly. Flash cards and/or the math web sites I have
listed on my web page are two excellent ways your child can practice at home.
Like the DOL, students will be given time to keep their skills sharp.
Each morning, students will be given 5 math problems to solve, and once a
week students will participate in graphing and estimating activities. In
addition, student will be assigned a daily review page to give them added
practice. Over the course of a week many concepts will be reinforced.
Science
Students will begin this year exploring plants, animals, habitats, and
different food chains. Students will conclude this unit of study by
researching an animal of their choice and constructing its habitat. Later,
students will learn about natural resources, the water cycle, states of
matter, geology and simple machines. Students will explore these topics
further by conducting simple experiments and by observing demonstrations. My
goal this year is to spark students’ curiosity for science and improve their
observation and reporting skills.
In late April or May, we will take a field trip to Ernie Miller Park.
This is an excellent program that focuses on the three primary elements of
all ecosystems: producers, consumers and decomposers.
Social Studies
The focus for the third grade is the community, its history, geography,
economics, and resources. We will learn more about the Kansas City
community, make comparisons with other cities in the United State and the
world, and discuss how interdependent communities are. In the spring,
students will be learning more about the city of Lenexa and take a field trip
to City Hall where they will learn about the city’s government and the
services they provide. We are also fortunate to have the Jr. Achievement
program come to our school to enrich our studies on community living.
In an effort to expand students’ geographical knowledge and map skills,
students will answer a daily GEO question. This is part of our morning work.
Spanish
Mrs. Collins will be meeting with your children two times a week for 25
minutes throughout the school year. This year’s theme will be communities.
The children will identify the communities of animals, family school,
neighborhood and cities. In addition the children extend their vocabulary of
family, school, neighborhood, and cities; they will also gain knowledge of
the historical and political aspects of some Spanish speaking communities. In
addition, they will gain knowledge of historical and political aspects of
certain Spanish speaking communities.
The children will be assessed in a variety of ways. The students will
participate in question-response activities, listening and speaking
activities. They will be expected to be active listeners and respectful to
the teacher and their fellow classmates.
Señora Collins provides a positive learning experience. The children
are very special to her and she will do everything to foster the love of
foreign language from the beginning!
Homework Policy
I know how important family time is and having your child actively
involved in extra curricular activities. I want to assure you that the work
I assign each day is to help reinforce the concepts taught. I teach study
skills, and encourage all students to work efficiently inside the classroom
to complete assignments. In most cases, homework is simply class work that
was not finished during the day. I encourage you to help your child develop
good study habits. Please sit down with your child, discuss after school
activities, and map out a 30 to 40 minute period of time when he or she can
study quietly. During that block of time your child should finish any written
assignments and use the remaining time to study math facts, spelling words,
vocabulary and/or read. If you find your child is having more homework than
he/she can handle, please contact me so a more reasonable assignment may be
given and/or work habits can be assessed.
The following is the third and fourth grade homework policy:
* One day late - use recess or free time to finish the work.
* Two days late – use recess to finish work and a note goes home.
* Three days late – use recess time to finish work and a phone call home.
Repeated occurrences of missing work are more a concern in third
grade. This concern will be addressed with parents. When your child is
absent, please call the office to request work. Only necessary work will be
sent home. A sick child will have a one-day extension for every day they
miss. Please check your child’s assignment notebook nightly.
Discipline
I believe in creating a learning environment that encourages and
builds students self-esteem and respect for others. I want my students to
enjoy school and help them develop their own motivation for learning. I
believe in taking a positive approach to classroom discipline that focuses on
the learning process, not their mistakes. My rules are simple. They are
based on respect and doing one’s best.
To foster a positive classroom environment I use Love and Logic
principles. Children are expected and encouraged to practice self-control and
self-discipline. They are responsible for their own work, property, actions,
etc. Normally the following action will happen for inappropriate behavior:
Discussion
The child and I will discuss their behavior and identify more
appropriate choices.
Depending on the behavior, appropriate SECOND STEP or LOVE AND LOGIC problem
solving techniques will be used or consequences assigned.
Think Sheet
I will have the child fill out a form that will help them to think
about what they chose to do wrong and what would have been a better choice.
When they are done the student and I will have a short conference (depending
on behavior) discussing what they wrote on the sheet. Students will bring
this sheet home for a parent to sign.
Technology
HTS understands the importance of integrating technology into the
curriculum wherever possible and appropriate. Technology has become a
necessary tool to enhance learning in my classroom. It makes it possible for
students to communicate information and ideas more effectively while
promoting their creativity. Thanks to PTO, our classroom is now equipped
with an overhead project, DVD player, and four Internet connected student
computers. Throughout the year we will be visiting many wonderful websites,
most of which are listed on my webpage for student to use at home.
Monday Folders
Every Monday a folder with your child’s work from the previous week
and my newsletter will be sent home. Please review the papers with your
child and sign the sheet attached to the folder. I ask students to bring the
empty folders back on Tuesday. Daily notes, bulletins and reminders will be
sent home regularly and will not be held for the Monday folder.
Book Orders
This year we are ordering from the Scholastic Book Clubs. Please make
your checks payable to Scholastic Books. It is helpful to put the check and
order form in an envelope marked Book Club Money. The orders will always be
due 1 week following the date students receive the catalogs. Each purchase
made from Scholastic earns our classroom points that can be used to buy more
books for our classroom library. Therefore I would like to thank you in
advance for your future orders.
Birthday Treats
Birthdays are special occasions, and we enjoy celebrating them at
school. Please know you are welcome to send treats to the classroom on your
child’s birthday, but it is not necessary. Whether or not treats are
present, we will be sure to take a few moments to honor your child’s
birthday.
Snacks
Third graders will be going to lunch at 11:40, which is later than
previous years. They may bring snacks to school should they need something
to tide them over until lunch time. Dry foods such as fruit roll-ups,
granola bars, crackers or pretzels are ideal because it helps to minimize the
clean up time and allows us to get back to work quickly. It is always nice to
have snacks available in the classroom for students who forget to bring
something from home. We would welcome any snacks you would like to
contribute to the class.
Uniforms
Please label uniforms, coats, hats, and sweatshirts. It is amazing
how many unclaimed articles of clothing we accumulate in our homeroom
throughout the year simply because students can not identify which is theirs.
Just a reminder, this year both girls and boys are required to wear belts at
all times with their uniform slacks and/or shorts.
Communication
I am pleased to be serving both you and your child during this school
year. I want to create a positive classroom atmosphere that recognizes each
child’s unique potential, provides great opportunities for learning, and
encourages responsibility and respect for others. I want the classroom to be
a place children enjoy coming to each and every day, a place where they feel
safe and special. I also recognize the important role you as parents play in
your child’s education and value your input. Weekly newsletters will go home
with your child on Monday to let you know what we are working on in class. I
will also keep you up-to-date on your child’s progress and how his/her needs
are being met. Please feel free to contact me anytime regarding your child’s
progress, behavior, or other concerns you may have. You can contact me at
school or by e-mail. If I am not available when you call, I will be happy to
return your call as soon as possible.
phone 888-3250 ext. 625 e-mail
pmcentire@htslenexa.org
Website
I maintain a webpage that contains my newsletters, calendar, project
information, spelling list and wonderful website links for children that
provide reinforcement in all curricular areas. Throughout the year as we get
to specific units of study, I will be sending home more safe website
addresses you and your child can use for additional reinforcement.
http://htslenexa.eduk12.net/ or
http://teacherweb.com/ks/holytrinityschool/phyllismcentire/gallery1.stm
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