Happy New Year!

We are excited about 2014.  Here are some important upcoming dates to know.

January 16th - Principal's Challenge with multiplication facts - If your child does not pass on this attempt a second chance will be given in two weeks.

January 20th - No school, MLK Day

January 30th - Principal's Challenge with multiplication facts, second chance to pass these mixed facts

February 10th - All payments and permission slips due for the Little White House Field Trip

Thank you for your support of our Winter Holiday Rotation Party.  We could not have done it without the parent volunteers and donations. 

                                            

  

Happy December!

Thank you to all those parents, friends, and family who were able to join us for a yummy Thanksgiving lunch! We enjoyed our time with you! Here are a few dates and upcoming events you might want to mark on your calendars:

Dec.  5 - 5th grade Musical Show

Dec.18 - LAST DAY FOR AR (Accelerated Reader) Tests - Get that goal!!

Dec. 19 - Winter Holiday Rotations at school - More info. will be coming home soon!

Dec. 20 - AR (Accelerated Reader) Party for those who got their goals! (More info. coming soon!)

Dec. 23- Jan. 6 Winter Holidays for Students - NO SCHOOL!

Jan. 7 - Students back to School, Third nine weeks begins

November 2013

Already November? Time sure does fly when you're having fun! The third grade had a fantastic field trip to the Vulcan Rock Quarry last month. We hope that your child enjoyed it and learned some valuable facts about rocks! 

Reminder about daily snacks- We have noticed that several students are not bringing in the best snacks during snack time. It is important that students are eating healthy throughout the school day to to help maximize their focus for the school work at hand. Also, only allow your child to bring in plain drinking water if they choose to.

Third grade is all about multiplication! The kids are working diligently on learning their math facts. Each class participates in multiplication math drills each week to check and make sure the students are progressing in their fact knowledge. We ask that you quiz your child for 5-10 minutes each day on the fact they are working on. This is a great thing to do in a car ride, right before bedtime, use sidewalk chalk to write out the facts, or call them out at the dinner table! Be creative! Students should master the 0-10 facts by the December break.



**Be sure to check agendas each night for upcoming tests and news from the classroom.**

Important upcoming dates:

November 18:   2nd 9 weeks progress reports go home

November 21:  Thanksgiving Lunch

November 25-29:  Thanksgiving Break- no school

December 18:  Last day to make AR goal

December 19:  Holiday Rotation (more information coming soon)

December 20:  AR Party/ Last day of the 2nd 9 weeks marking period

Third Grade News - February, 2013

Students should have memorized their multiplication facts through ten at this point and be working on division facts. If your child is not at this point, its time to spend some extra time with flashcards, or online practice programs, to get up to speed. They will struggle horribly in fourth grade math if they are not fluent with the basic facts.

This month, third grade will begin learning about the distributive property and how it can help in multiplying larger numbers. There will be lots of hands-on practice with base ten blocks. Asking your child to explain it to you is a good way to check for understanding!

We will also continue our number talks and constructed response practice to strengthen students' basic number sense. Thanks to all those parents that were able to attend the Curriculum Night. Hopefully, that gave you a better idea of math under Common Core.

In Language Arts, Reading and Writing, we will be looking at point of view and different sentence structures ( simple, compound, and complex). Our writing focus continues on narratives, informational, and opinion pieces. Read aloud books and reading groups reinforce good reading strategies and story development.

In Science and Social Studies, we have completed our study of Georgia habitats and the adaptations of the organisms that live in each. We are beginning our unit on Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. Our field trip to the Little White House this month will be a highlight of this unit.

A word about handwriting. Cursive is a third grade standard in Georgia. While some students may not be quite developmentally ready for this, all students should have small (as compared to kindergarten print), legible handwriting. The intermediate grades require much more in terms of writing, as does Common Core, and students that cannot write easily and legibly will struggle.

 

Finally, continue to read the What's Happening school newsletter and school emails, as well as your child's daily folder to stay informed on your child's progress and school activities. Information on Valentine's Day will be sent home by individual teachers.

October

Happy Fall! 

Upcoming calendar dates to remember:    October 12 - End of the First 9 Weeks
                                                                                  - Last day to make AR goal
                                                                                  - Fall Festival
                                                               October 18 - School Wide Field Trip
                                                               October 22 - 26 Conference Week
                                                                                  - Early Dismissal 12:15PM
                                                               October 31 - Field Trip to Vulcan Quarry

Conferences
We are looking forward to meeting with each of you during your assigned time during conference week.  Please arrive on time and we will go over the report card for the first nine weeks with you.  The teachers will be prepared to discuss any concerns and establish a plan for a successful year in third grade.  Be sure to let your child's teacher know if there is a specific day and time that you can come to your conference.  NOTE: We will not be doing the morning confernces beteween 7:15 and 9:00AM.  All morning conferences will have to end by 7:20AM this year.

Multiplication
Your child has started to memorize the multplication facts for 0's up to 10 x 10.  Please help your child be successful in class with these facts by spending 10 to 15 minutes 3 or 4 times a week practicing the multiplication facts. 


Sincerely,
The Third Grade Teachers:
Beth Burruss      Taylor Washington     Lauren Smith     Kathryn Davidson      
                                   
Karen Shoenig     Angela Schneider      Gigi Richardson      Davida Dyer   

September

 Welcome parents! 

Upcoming calendar dates to remember: September 4-13 - Cogat and ITBS testing
                                                                October 8- School Wide Field Trip
                                                                October 12- End of the First 9 Weeks



Some of you have joined us after the first week of school.  Due to this you may not have received our welcome letter  which outlines the basics about third grade. Please see the letter below and of course, feel free to email us should you have any questions.

Homework

         Each night your child will bring home an Agenda with assignments written down.  Important information regarding weekly assignments, conduct, and special announcements will be in this Agenda.  This agenda will come home every night and should be returned signed, every day.  This Agenda will serve as an important means of communication between parents and teachers, so please review it carefully.  Students with a blue dot showed self discipline all day long, students with a green dot had at least one inappropriate incident during the day. Students with a yellow dot received multiple warnings and students with a red dot have had either a teacher/parent contact or an administrative contact.

            All students are expected to read at home every night.  Reading logs will be checked daily. Parents must initial the reading log in order for students to receive credit for the assigned reading.  Minutes will increase throughout the year. (20 minutes each night for the first 9 weeks)

Grading Policy

          Please note that all students will receive a 9 week report card, as well as a progress report.  Behavior concerns will be noted in the Agendas and on the progress report. Grades will consist of summative and formative assessments given throughout the 9 weeks.

Snacks

 Snacks are optional, but strongly encouraged because 3^rd grade does not attend lunch until almost 12 P.M.  For this reason, we also encourage students to eat breakfast at home or in the cafeteria.  Please refer to the list of the Dynamic Dozen (healthy snacks) listed on the back of students’ Agenda for suggestions.  A student may bring in a water bottle with his or her name on it (no juice or soda).

Birthday Celebrations

If you would like to recognize the birthday of your child in a special way here at school, we would like for you to do that, but also it is very important this celebration not disrupt the learning environment in any way. For this reason, please adhere to the following expectations.

·                     Please do not send in a cake or cupcakes due to icing stains.

·                     Please do not send any party favors or gift bags.

·                     No candles

Suggestions

·                     Cookies

·                     Little Debbie Snacks  

·                     Brownies

·                     Rice Crispy Treats

·                     Muffins

Dress Code

            Uniforms are mandatory.  Please refer to the back of the students’ Agendas for guidelines concerning uniforms and appropriate dress.  All shirts must be tucked in.  Parents who need help with uniforms should contact the school office.  Sneakers are required for P.E. days.  Feel free to send in a sweater, sweatshirt, or jacket with your child in case they get cold.

*******Students who are not in uniform 5 or more times over each 9 week period are not eligible for Character Club.*******

            We thank you for sharing your children with us and we look forward to getting to know and work with them.  Look for more information to follow about third grade academics, procedures, and policies in the upcoming newsletters and Agendas.  With your help it is going to be a great year!

Sincerely,

The Third Grade Teachers

Beth Burruss          Taylor Washington        Lauren Smith        Kathryn Davidson       

                                   

Karen Shoenig          Angela Schneider      Gigi Richardson           Davida Dyer   

Posted by Sedalia Park Third Grade Team at 3:44 PM

Third Grade Newsletter

Hello! Can you believe it is the fourth nine weeks? This year has flown by! It is March and third grade has alot of activities coming up. Report cards will be coming home Monday the 19th, so check your child's Monday Folder.

CRCT is coming soon! Third grade students have to pass the reading portion of the test in order to be promoted to the next grade level. The dates for the CRCT are: April 18- 27. Look for more information to come home with your child soon.

AR goals have been reset and this the last opportunity of the year to make the goal! Encourage your child to work hard and stay diligent to make it to the last AR party of the year!

March is Math Madness Month here at the park. The third grade challenge will be given by Principal Lawson and multiplication will be the focus. If your child is still struggling to learn their multiplication facts, please continue to work with them. Firstinmath.com is still available from any computer for extra practice. Students can earn points to receive recognition in class. Challenge your child to have their facts mastered this month!

Here is what we will be studying the 4th nine weeks:

Reading/Language Arts/Writing: We will be focusing on persuasive writing, idioms, and slang. The students will complete a cummulative grammar assessment that covers all priviously taught skills.

Math: We will be extending our work with multiplcation and division, elasped time,  and data analysis.

Social Studies/ Science: We will be studying Thurgood Marshall, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Cesar Chavez in social studies. In science, we will explore conservation and recycling.

Important dates this month:

Mar 5: Zaxby’s Reading Night, 6:00-7:00 pm

Mar 6: Chick-fil-a Spirit Night, 3:00-8:00 pm

Mar 6: Governing Board Meeting, 6:00 pm

Mar 7: 5^th Grade Georgia Writing Assessment

Mar 8: PTA Meeting, 1^st Grade Performs, 6:00 pm

Mar 11: Daylight Savings: Set clocks forward 1 hour

Mar 12-23: Spring Cookie Dough Fundraiser

Mar 13: Math Night at East Piedmont Publix, 5-7 pm

Mar 15: Kindergarten Sewell Park “Rocks” Field Trip

Mar 17: St. Patrick’s Day

Mar 19: Report Cards Home

Mar 23: Taste of the Park, 6:00-8:00 pm

Mar 28: New Kindergarten Registration, 8-11:30 am

Mar 29: The ABCs of Discipline, 11:00 am-12:00 noon

Mar 30: School Wide Walk

Mar 30: Yogolycious Spirit Night