2009-2010 School Supplies

Be sure your child has a composition notebook (black and white cover) for their writer's notebook.  Make sure your child has a pair of blunt tip scissors.  

Items we could use...

•  colored index cards (large)
•  post it sticky notes
•  masking tape
•  glue sticks
•  wrapped candy
•  colored copy paper 

If you have any chapter books or picture books that are in at least decent condition that you can not use anymore at home, please consider donating them to our classroom library.  

Thank you in advance for your help!

THIRD GRADE RULES:

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Students will be rewarded with compliments, postive notes and/or phone calls home, fun Friday, plus valuable tickets. Your fourth grader will use a "ticket exchange" positive behavior and attitude system. Students can earn tickets for various reasons and the value of the ticket will also vary. These tickets can be turned in for many different rewards throughout the year. See below:

10 tickets: pencils, erasers, pencil sharpeners 

25 tickets: trip to the picnic box treasures

50 tickets: 20 minutes of extra computer time, sit at teacher's desk for 

a day, homework pass for 1 subject, book cover

75 tickets: eat lunch with a friend, wirte with a pen for a day, sit with a

friend for a day 

150 tickets: Free ice cream, bring a special something to school to show and tell

250 tickets: Lunch off campus with your teacher (must be scheduled), teacher to bake you homemade chocolate chip cookies (my mom's recipe)

Consequences

Students will receive strikes for inappropriate behavior. When a student breaks a rule a strike will be given and documented in the student's agenda. We work on a three strikes your are out philosophy, meaning no more chances.  Please understand that I will give verbal warnings before a strike is given.  

1 strike= silent lunch 

2 strikes=silent lunch and time out

3 strikes=student will call home and have a written assignment to complete 

**If an inappropriate behavior occurs too often or a serious situations occurs (like fighting) your child will be sent to the office with a write up.

STUDENT of the WEEK

 September 7-11 Andrew

September 14-18 Braxton

Citizens of the Month

CHARACTER COUNTS

September:  Politeness:  

October:  

November: 

December:  

January: 

February:

March:

April:

May:

June:

ACCELERATED READING

DO YOU KNOW YOUR ZPD?

Our school wide theme AGAIN this year is a focus on our garden, and "Plant a seed...read." We have lots of great end of quarter rewards planned that tie beautifully with our theme. Our students have to reach 100% of his/her personal goal at 85% accuracy or better  in order to attend the celebration. Be sure your child is reading on their level and working hard to meet the personal goal designed for him/her.  Your child's ZPD is written in their reading log and also in their red library folder.  Points to be earned are also found there.   

FIRST QUARTER 100% REWARD:  November 2nd

Popcorn and a movie in the gym.  We will need

donations of juice boxes for this special reward. 

If you would like to help out, please let me know.

This year 3rd graders will participate in a county writing test in March.  We will work all year preparing students to write personal and imaginative narratives.   Writing is my all time favorite thing to teach.  We will bring writing to life as much as possible and have fun "exploding moments!"

THE 5 FEATURES OF GOOD WRITING:

Focus

Organization

Support and Elaboration

Style

Conventions 

You can help at home by telling stories of your past with your child.  Make up stories, share true stories, and mix them up.  Spruce up stories with made up parts here and there and ALWAYS be sure to use your senses to paint a picture.  

You will receive more detailed information throughout the year.  

Reading

Spelling and Vocabulary

  Our feature story is The Ballad of Mulan

Spelling words are located in your child's agenda.  Please help your child study for their test on Friday.

Three spelling activities are due Thursday:

3 times each, a sentence for each of the words, and ABC order.

Math

We will be working hard on learning place value.  Your child will explore this concept using base ten blocks to understand place value.  This coming week we will focus on vocabulary and the difference between place value and value.  We will learn to write numbers in 3 different ways.  (standard form, expanded form, and word form)

Science

Your child will begin science half way into the first quarter.  Mrs. Mullis will begin teaching "Plants" with our class in 4 1/2 weeks.  We will switch October 5th for the 1st quarter.

Social Studies

We will be studying map skills heavily over the next two weeks.  Be sure to work on helping your child learn their address and phone number without help.  Study the 5 types of maps and the map vocabulary worksheet your child has in their homework folder.  A test will be given on Thursday the 17th.

DAILY SCHEDULE

Monday and Tuesday

8:10 - 8:30  Word Problem of the Day

8:30 - 9:40  Math

9:45 - 10:50  Reading

10:55-11:25 Recess

11:30-12:00 LUNCH

12:05-1:05 Writing

1:10-2:00 Social Studies/Science

2:10-2:45 Remediation Workshop

Wednesday

(same as above except...)

1:10-1:55 Guidance A week/Media B week

2:00-2:45 Social Studies

Thursday

2:00-2:45 PE/Mrs. Mitchem

Friday

8:35-9:20 Music/Dr. Rob

9:20-10:05 Art/Mrs. Beard

10:10-11:00 Reading

12:05-12:30 Reading Continued

12:35-1:30 Writing

1:35-2:45 Math