Miss Kearns's Third Grade Blog

May is here! We have a lot of fun and exciting things happening from now until the end of the year.

We had a wonderful time on our field trip to the Highland Park Historical Society and Stupey Cabin. Here is a picture from our trip:

The students were given a packet on Tuesday explaining the Highland Park/Highwood/Fort Sheridan business project. The third grade teachers went over the packet in class with the students. Please look through the packet with your child, sign the cover sheet, and return the signed cover sheet to school by Monday, May 7. Please let me know if you have any questions about the project. Thank you so much for your help and support with the project. The students are very excited about the project and I know they will have fun with it.

The students will be participating in some assessments in the coming weeks. Today, the students will be assessed on their oral fluency during CBMs. MAP testing will be first thing in the morning on Monday, May 14^th, Tuesday, May 15^th, and Wednesday, May 16^th. Please make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep, has a healthy breakfast, and arrives to school on time.

The Speech Tournament will be held this Saturday. The students who are participating in this event have worked very hard to memorize their speeches and I am sure they will do a wonderful job. I am so proud of those students who will be competing; it takes a lot of courage to speak in front of a group of people. They should all be very proud of themselves!

The students are finishing up their Google presentation about a planet that they researched. Students are encouraged to share their projects with their parents. Also, we have started learning about Chicago. We will being going on a field trip at the conclusion of this unit. I will provide you with more information regarding the field trip in the coming weeks.

In math, the students will be taking a test on decimals next week. Our next math chapter, Chapter 23, will focus on multiplying one-digit numbers by two and three-digit numbers. It is very important that your child practice his/her multiplication facts at home.

In reading we have started lesson 19. The students will be reading the folktale “Half Chicken” and they will be learning about theme of a story. We are continuing to learn about poetry and the students are enjoying writing their own poems. I have put some links to different poetry websites under the “Student Resources” page of the blog.

Thank you for all of your support. If have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.

This week is Earth Week! We are celebrating by participating in a variety of school activities. The students are encouraged to wear green on Friday.

In reading, our class has started lesson 17. In this lesson, students will be reading a play called “Two Bear Cubs”. We are continuing to review the skills of comparing and contrasting, prefixes and suffixes, and adjectives.

Last week, the students selected a fairy tale to read and then wrote their own version of that fairy tale from a different point of view. The students’ final copies of their stories are due on Friday. This week, we have started learning about poetry. The students need to choose a poem to read aloud to the class on Friday. During this poetry unit, we will read and write different kinds of poems.

In math, we finished the fraction chapter. Today, we will begin chapter 19 which focuses on decimals. Please make sure your child is practicing his/her multiplication and division facts at home on a regular basis.

In science, we are finishing up our solar system unit. The students learned a lot about the sun, moon, stars, and planets. They will be working on their planet research project in library and computer lab.

In social studies, we have started talking about Chicago. This is always a fun unit for the third graders. The students were given a packet on Monday that described a business project. Students can either work alone or with one or two other people (they can work with students from other third grade classes). Students will interview the owner of  a business in Highland Park, Highwood, or Fort Sheridan, in order to learn more about businesses in communities. The students seem to be very excited about this project, and it should be fun! Please contact me if you have any questions about this project.

On Monday morning, our class will be taking a filed trip to the Highland Park Historical Society and the Stupey Cabin. The students are looking forward to this trip!

Thank you for all of your support. If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me or post them on the blog.

I hope all of you had a nice weekend. It is hard to believe it is the second week in April!

Our class has earned a class reward for good behavior. The kids voted to eat lunch in the classroom with me this Thursday. Students should bring a nut-free lunch that day if they choose to participate. They are doing an excellent job following ROAR in both our classroom and around the school.

The district read-a-thon ends today. Please have your child bring in his/her reading log for the read-a-thon tomorrow, Tuesday, April 10. Our class has read over 15,000 minutes already!! Keep up the great reading!

We are still working on lesson 16 in Storytown. The kids have read “Lon Po Po,” which is a Red Riding Hood story from China. The students have been participating in some fun writing activities. They are learning about voice and how to use adjectives to enhance their writing. We will be reading a variety of versions of different fairy tales to see how voice impacts a story. Later this week, the students will rewrite their own version of a fairy tale.

In math, we are continuing to work on chapter 18 which has focused on fractions. The next chapter will be Chapter 19. We will learn about decimals in this chapter. The students should continue to practice their fact fixer patterns at home.

In science, we have started our space unit. The first few lessons have been about the sun. During this unit, the students will be researching a planet in library. They will use this research to help them create a Google presentation to share with the class.

If you have any questions/concerns, please feel free to contact me. Thank you for your ongoing support.

It was so nice to see all of you during conferences. I know the students were very proud of the work they shared during conferences. I am so lucky to work with such great students and parents!

We will be finishing lesson 15 in Storytown this week. This has been a review lesson. The students will be working in groups and preforming a readers’ theater. After spring break, we will be moving on to lesson 16 which will focus on fairy tales. Students can bring in versions of their favorite fairy tales to share with the class if they would like after break.

The students will have a reading log over spring break. They will be required to read at least 100 minutes. This log will be due Monday, April 2. They should record the number of minutes they read on their classroom reading log as well as the Read-A-Thon log. The Read-A-Thon form is due by April 9th. Keep up the great reading!

The students will be finishing chapter 14 in math this week. After break, we will be starting chapter 18 which will focus on fractions. The students have now learned all 36 fact fixer patterns! I have showed them how to create flash cards at home to help them practice these patterns.

I hope all of you have a wonderful spring break. I encourage you to comment on the blog and tell the class about all of the fun things you are doing over break. School will resume on Monday, April 2.

We have had a fun and exciting week! The students have been participating in a variety of school-wide activities to celebrate Dr. Seuss’s birthday. On Thursday, the students attended an assembly where Ruby Bridges gave a presentation. Her message was, “Opening Minds, Opening Hearts.” The kids really enjoyed this assembly.

In reading, we have begun lesson 12 in Storytown. The reading skill we will focus on in this lesson is plot. The students will be reading a realistic fiction story entitled “A Pen Pal for Max”. I have put the new vocabulary words and definitions under the reading vocabulary page. Today, I will be sending home information regarding the IRead for 112, which is our district’s annual read-a-thon. I encourage the students to participate in this great event. This program runs from March 9th-April 9th. Please read the packet of information and contact me if you have any questions.

The students have been working on chapter 14 in math. This chapter focuses on plane figures. There are a lot of vocabulary terms that are presented in this chapter. I have listed all of the terms and definitions on the math vocabulary page of the blog.

In social studies, we have been learning about communities. The students worked together as a class to create a community in our classroom. They are very excited to show you this bulletin board during conferences.

I am looking forward to seeing all of you next week during conferences. If you are unsure of your conference day/time or you have a conflict with your scheduled conference time, please contact me. Don’t forget that the students are invited to participate in this conference.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Just a reminder that ISAT testing starts next Monday, February 27, and will end on Friday, March 2. The students will take 2 tests on Monday and one test on each of the following days. The morning tests start at 8:50 and the afternoon test will start right after lunch recess. Each test lasts for about 1 hour.

Here is some additional information about the ISATs:

Why do our students take ISAT tests?

The state uses ISAT tests to make sure children are meeting the Illinois state standards. District 112 has created power standards based on the Illinois state standards. These standards guide our instruction. Benchmarks have been developed and assessments measure student mastery of these standards.

How do teachers prepare students for the ISAT tests?

Teachers prepare students for the material on the ISAT tests by teaching the power standards. Students practice responding to written text, problem solving and expository writing as part of their daily work. The weeks before ISAT testing, students practice these skills.

How can I prepare my child for the ISAT tests?

Make sure your child goes to bed early and starts the day with a healthy breakfast. Reassure your child that this test will not keep him/her from passing into 4th grade. I always tell my students that they will wake up the next day and nothing will change. I also prepare them by telling them that students are not expected to know everything on the test. Your child is prepared for these tests. All we ask is for him/her to take his/her time and do hos/her best work.

Please make sure your child arrives to school on time and do not make doctor appointments during testing week. If your child is sick, he/she will be able to make up the test.

When will parents get the test results?

It usually takes the state of Illinois a while to score all these tests. Parents usually receive their child’s test results in the fall.

How does Wayne Thomas use these results?

Teachers use these results to help guide instruction. For example, if my students did not do well on a particular subtest, then I would work on improving instruction in that area the following year. The fourth grade teachers might use some of the data from these tests when making decisions for interventions. These tests are not used to determine classroom placements for next year.

Conferences are coming. I sent home conference confirmation slips today with the students. The staff has worked together to coordinate times for siblings. Your child is encouraged to participate in these conferences. He/She will be invited to join the last few minutes of our conference. Please let me know if you need to change the time of your conference.

Here is the link to the students’ timelines: http://www.timetoast.com/. Click “sign in” at the top. The email address is kkearns@nssd112.org and the password is 123456. Please encourage your child to share their timeline with you.

Have a nice weekend!

On Tuesday we celebrated Valentine’s Day. Thank you to Mrs. Cohen and Mrs. Hoffmann for organizing and helping with our class party. The kids had a great time and enjoyed decorating their picture frames.

We will be continuing to practice for the upcoming ISATs in both reading and math. ISATs will begin on Monday, February 27 and continue through the week. The tests will be given in the mornings. There will be one test per day except on Monday when the students will take one test in the morning and one in the afternoon. I have explained to the students that they do not need to worry about this test. All we expect is that they try their best. They have been working very hard and I am so proud of them. They are prepared and will do great. As a parent, you can help by:

1. Encouraging your child to go to bed early.

2. Providing your child with a healthy breakfast.

3. Getting your child to school on time.

In math we have been discussing fractions and we will begin learning about probability. We will go back to flexibly grouping for math after the ISATs.

The students are working on the final step of their timeline. Mrs. Hales has showed them how to insert pictures. The students will be presenting their timelines to the class next week and I will make them available to you so you can see your child’s project. The students have done a very nice job.

In science, we have been discussing simple machines. The students have learned about  an inclined plane, wedge, screw, lever, wheel and axle, and pulley. After we wrap up this science unit, we will begin discussing communities in social studies.

Conference confirmation letters will be sent home at the end of next week. Please make sure you see the day and time of your conference. I will do my best to honor as many requests as I can; however, the majority of the slips that were returned had evening requests. Thank you in advance for your flexibility around scheduling the conference times. If you have any questions regarding conferences, please feel free to contact me.

Just a reminder that the Six Flags reading log is due on Tuesday, February 21. Also, there is no school on Monday. I hope you all have a nice three day weekend!

It is hard to believe another month has gone by! Your children have been working extremely hard. We have been spending a lot of time preparing for the ISATs, which will be coming up at the end of February. The students have been learning a variety of test taking skills. Also, they have been continuing to learn how to write extended reading and math responses through modeling, guided practice, and independent practice.

In reading, we have begun lesson 11 in Storytown. The students will be reading a realistic fiction story entitled “Loved Best”. The focus skill for this lesson is plot (problem, important events, and solution). It is extremely important that the students are continuing to read at home and turning in their reading log weekly. The Six Flags reading log is due on February 20th. The students are beginning to work on creating a timeline on the computer based on the biography they read. They are very excited about using technology to complete this project.

In math, we are finishing measurement (chapters 20 and 21). The students will be taking tests on both of these chapters. Next, we will be moving on to perimeter, area, and volume. Please continue to encourage your child to share with you the fact fixer patterns they have been learning in school. They have learned 26 patterns already!

In science, we have begun to talk about forces and motion. The students have learned about the different ways objects can move. In this chapter, they will also be learning about simple machines.

On Friday, I will be sending home the spring conference sign-up. Please indicate 3 times that are best for you. The students are invited to attend this conference, so please keep this in mind when choosing a time. This form is due by February 10th.

Thank you for all of your support at home. As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions/concerns.

I hope you all had a nice long weekend. We have some exciting things happening this week.

In reading, our class will be starting Lesson 10. This lesson will review a variety of skills including using reference sources, fact and opinion, synonyms and antonyms, and main idea and details. The students will be reading a readers’ theater entitled “The Case of Three Bears’ Breakfast”. I have put the robust vocabulary words for this lesson under the reading vocabulary page. As part of reading, the students are learning and practicing how to write a reading extended response. The students will not have a spelling test this week since it is a review lesson.

Today in library, the students were introduced to a project they will be doing over the next few weeks. The students each chose a biography about a famous person. They need to read this biography at home by next Tuesday, January 24. This reading can be recorded on their weekly reading log. In the weeks to come, the students will be using this biography to help gather information. Eventually, they will be creating a timeline on the computer during our computer time.

In math, the students have been learning about measurement. We will be taking a few days to review the concepts of elapsed time and calendar. The students have also been learning how to write a math extended response. They are expected to solve a problem, write the steps they took to solve the problem, and why they did each step.

Your children have earned a class reward for all of their hard work and following our ROAR expectations. They have chosen to have an electronics day on Friday. Students can bring any hand held electronics to school on Friday. They will have 30 minutes at the end of the day to use their electronics. I will collect the electronics in the morning and lock them up until it is time to use them. Students who want to use a laptop will be able to use the WT laptops.

Please make sure your child is coming to school with boots, snowpants, hats, and gloves. It is cold and wet when they go outside for recess and we want to make sure students are dressed appropriately.

Thank you for all of your support at home. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.

Happy New Year! I hope all of you had a wonderful winter break. Please feel free to leave a comment telling me what you did over winter break.

We have started lesson 9 in reading. The folktale we will be reading is called “Stone Soup”. I have put the robust vocabulary words for this lesson on the reading vocabulary page of the blog. Throughout this lesson, the students will be working on finding the main idea and supporting details of a passage.

In math, we have started chapter 20. This chapter focuses on customary measurement. We will be doing this chapter as a whole class. The vocabulary for chapter 20 is posted under the math vocabulary page of the blog. The students will also be working on math extended responses both in class and for homework.

I sent home two book orders last Friday. They are due this Friday, January 13th. You can order online using our class code or you can send a check to school with your child.

There is an early dismissal tomorrow. Students will be dismissed at 1:00 p.m. Please still send your child to school with a lunch.

I am so thankful to work with such a wonderful group of students and parents. Thank you for all of your support. I greatly appreciate everything you do. I hope that 2012 brings all of you health and happiness!