May 7 - May 11

Hi Families,

Wow we are getting close to the end of the year! This week, we were able to make a "countdown to summer" chain with one link for each person...meaning we're close to only 20 days of school left in third grade! Ah!!! We're reflecting a lot on how this year went and who we are becoming as learners and people, but also looking forward to summer and fourth grade. If your child is feeling nervous about next year, let me know so that I can answer any questions they have and hopefully get them feeling more excited.

Students had fun with play workshop! We had an assembly to discuss our different play personalities and then we played. Playing is beneficial for so many reasons. As children of all ages play, they are working on language, physical growth, self-confidence, social skills, gross motor skills, coping strategies, and more! Ask your child what play personality they think they are! I'm sure many of you will think of your child as you're reading one or two of the personalities :)

Reminders/Updates

• Field Trip permission slips were sent home this week for the NEW Zoo on May 15th! Please return the slip and money as soon as possible. Let me know if you need another copy. 
• We will be having our Animal Showcase on May 11th from 8:30-9:15 in the cafeteria. All are welcome!
• We finished ALL the Wisconsin Forward tests! To celebrate our class's hard work and effort, we'll be having an ice cream party! 
• The date of the party will be Friday, May 11th.
• Please bring in items that morning, if you signed up to bring something. (You can check the document here if you forgot what you signed up for!) 

Upcoming Events

May 8: Reading MAP test
May 10: Math MAP test
May 11: Animal Showcase 8:30-9:15 in cafeteria
May 11: Ice Cream Party Celebration

May 15: NEW Zoo Field trip 8:30-2:30
May 18: Ms. Feldkamp gone - Substitute Teacher all day

May 22: Family Night: Tailgate
May 25: NO SCHOOL

May 28: NO SCHOOL

June 4: "B" = Bright Colors/Sunglasses
June 5: "Y" = You're Active/Workout Wear for Field Day
June 6: "E" = bE you! Wear whatever makes you, YOU!
June 6: 11:30 Dismissal and LAST day of school!

Curriculum Update

Math: Mathematicians finished up this geometry and measurement unit and reviewed before the test on Friday. The next and FINAL math unit we'll begin next week focuses on story problems. This can be refreshing for some students, as they've been working on story problems for many years. However, now the tricky part is deciding what operation they need to use to solve the problem, if there is any extra or missing information, and if it is a two step problem. We'll start by talking about addition and subtraction word problems. As always, I'll be encouraging students to draw pictures to help them represent the problem and going back to check to be sure their answer makes sense. 

Writing: This past week we finished editing our second animal book. We also started to plan out our "Who Would Win" books! This week we will continue working hard on these books. Students will be making these books on the computer. We are working really hard at using mentor texts to help us remember what we need. On Friday, May 11 we will have our last informational writing on-demand. This is where students get 45 minutes to write a book using all the techniques and strategies they know. I will give students a few options for this:

1. Students can research a topic they want to write about and take notes and use these notes for their on-demand.
2. Students can use their current notes on their animals and write a book about their animal.
3. Use what they know about another topic and write an informational book about that.

Word Study:  In this unit, we worked on writing words with double vowels, or two vowels that together make one sound (like plAY or bAIt). We also had some fun writing sentences using homophones (words that sound the same but are spelled different, like "main" and "mane"). The trick words for next week are America, school, and thought. We'll take the Unit 10 test on Thursday. 

Reading: This week students dived a little deeper into the animal kingdom. They researched some evidence-based theories and did some more comparing and contrasting. This week we will be working hard on our showcases! Students will be creating their poster, slideshow, etc! We can't wait for you to see it!

*Scholastic forms were sent home! They will be due on Wednesday, May 16!

Content: In science this week we learned about how people create new breeds of animals by selecting certain traits and only having those animals have babies. Your child learned in particular how the earliest dogs were medium-sized and wolf-like, but using selective breeding, we managed to get the many different dog breeds, from small dogs to big dogs, spotted dogs to plain dogs. What makes selection possible is the fact that no two individuals are ever exactly alike--there are always small differences, and yet parents do pass on most of their traits to their offspring. You can help reinforce this learning at home by helping your child to notice these small differences in physical traits between siblings, cousins, and other family members, as well as to contemplate which traits have been passed on from one generation to the next.

Know that you can always contact me with any questions or concerns. Have a wonderful weekend!

Best,

Jenny