LANGUAGE ARTS~ My students have been working on improving their informational writing.  They have written paragraphs about The White House. We will be working on biographies next.  The class will do their research in the media center before writing these reports.

We continue to work on parts of speech, homophones, compound words, contractions, singular and plural possessive, guide words, and antonyms, and synonyms.

MATH~The class has done a great job with understanding the concept of multiplication. Now they just need to memorize their facts.  I will send home packets next week to assist them with this goal.

SOCIAL STUDIES~Mrs. Himmelberg will be testing the unit on Greece and communities tomorrow.  The children should already have been studying for this test.  They also have an "end of chapter" page they need to complete and turn in tomorrow.  The mini book on Mary McLeod Bethune is not due until Friday (12/5/08).

SCIENCE~Yesterday we had our first Georgia Performance Standards based Chattahoochee Nature Center lesson. The topic covered was "adaptations".  The students learned how animal adaptations such as camouflage help  them survive.  A BIG thanks to PTA for funding this program.

We also had a fabulous performance by a percussion trio named  "Ritmo Blue". They exposed the children to music from all over the world.

Next Monday we will have a Wellstar sponsored lesson called "Germquest". Health and hygiene will be the focus of this lesson.

Brrr...fall is definitely here! Please send a jacket or heavy sweatshirt with your child.  We go outside for recess daily.                                                     We are hard at work in our second nine week grading period.  My class has really settled into the routines of 3rd grade.  They are doing a great job with responsibility and organization. Thanks for looking over their nightly homework and having them correct any errors.  This is a huge help.

Third grade students will be busy this week with practices for the musical we will be performing on Nov. 6th at 6:30 p.m.  Friday (Oct 31st) will be an extremely hectic day as we will have rehearsals for the musical in the morning and fall centers in the afternoon. As a result I will give the Unit 12 spelling test this Thursday.

LANGUAGE ARTS~ We have been working in reading groups to improve our comprehension and fluency.  I have been teaching my students to use their highlighters to go back into a passage and locate answers.  Reading the questions before they read the passage also helps to improve comprehension.  Please encourage your children to read smoothly and with expression.  If they have to read the page to themselves first to practice this skill please allow them to do so. 

**Your child must earn 9 AR Points this nine weeks. To see improvement in your child's reading ability they must do some independent reading with a check for comprehension. Please note I will not count any points from tests that are below your child's reading range or have a score below 80%. This grading period ends right before the winter holidays. I will continue to send student records home every couple of weeks so you are aware of your child's progress.

We have been working on our letter writing skills. The class has focused on identifying the 5 parts of a letter.  This week we will work on what to include in the body of a letter and how to address a letter. Since we are learning how to address letters I think it's important that my students know their own home address. Please have them practice writing their 3 line home address as they will be required to do so as a part of their spelling dictation test starting next week.

MATH~ We are finishing up our unit on time.  The chapter 6 test will be this Thursday.  We will be moving on to multiplication next week. I will be sending home multiplication timed test packets next Monday.  To achieve mastery your child will be required to get 90 out 100 multiplication problems correct (with 0-9 as factors) in 7 minutes.

HEALTH~ The class has had some informative discussions on alcohol and drug awareness.  They are now familiar with the differences between OTC, prescription, and illegal drugs.  This week we will role play responses to someone trying to get them to try drugs.

UPCOMING EVENTS~

Oct. 30th- Mock Election

Oct. 31st- Fall Centers

Nov. 4th-  Election Day- Student Holiday

Nov. 6th-  3rd Grade Performance

Nov. 10th - High Touch High Tech

Nov. 17th -21st Book Fair

Nov. 19th- 3rd Grade Grandparents & Friends Luncheon 12:45 (Please turn in your reservation forms asap!!!!!!!!!! Thanks)

EARLY BIRD SPECIAL $22*
Nov. 1st price increast to $25*

On-line ordering available at:  http://www.myyear.com
*Note:  cost includes taxes.  Does not include 1x $1.75 processing fee per transaction, multiple items per order allowed.  Be sure to print & keep your confirmation for proof of payment.

ORDER FORMS ARE ALSO AVAILABLE ON THE CREDENZA OUTSIDE OF THE OFFICE.

I just wanted to remind you that we will be administering the CoGat Test  Wednesday and Thursday (Sept. 17th & 18th) and the IOWA Test all next week.  Please be sure your child is well rested and arrives at school on time after eating a good breakfast. We will begin testing promptly at 8:15 a.m.  Any student who is tardy will have to wait in the Media Center and make up the section of the test they missed at a later time. I will provide #2 pencils for each student. We will have a snack break mid- way through the testing period so please  send a nutritious snack each day.  Thank you for sending your child to school prepared to "show what they know"!!!

Is it September already?  My students have settled in extremely well to third grade. We have been working hard on listening, following directions, and responsibility. I have seen a huge improvement in all three areas!  Thanks for reinforcing all these skills at home.

MATH~

We just finished our chapter on place value.  Most of the class did extremely well on the Chapter 1 test.  The only errors were careless mistakes not gaps in understanding concepts.  Last week we began Chapter 2 which requires students to compare, order, and estimate numbers.  We will work on rounding numbers to the nearest ten, hundred, and thousand this week.  Please look over you child's homework and have them go back and correct any errors they may have made.  I try to give 1 or 2 timed tests a week.  Once your child masters an area twice they will no longer have "practice packets" for that area sent home!  I hope this motivates some reluctant  mathematicians :)

LANGUAGE ARTS~

We are working on writing complete sentences using some of the same words that are in the question to begin the answer.  We used the Wordly Wise story questions this week to practice this skill.

I teach grammar skills in isolation and then my students practice these skills in the Daily Language Review  and Mountain Language.

Please make sure your child is reading atleast 20 minutes a night. I will send home an AR report tomorrow so you have an idea of how many AR points your child has, what their percentage correct is on the answers, and the average reading level of books they have been reading. They will need 8 AR points at the end of this nine weeks.

SOCIAL STUDIES~

My class will start going to Mrs. Himmelberg next week for Social Studies.  they will be studying map and globe skills.  This unit covers cardinal directions, intermediate directions, lines of latitude and lingitude, hemispheres, and continents.

UPCOMING EVENTS~

Sept.   5~  Spirit Day

Sept.   8~  High Touch High Tech   "Fun'omena"

Sept.   11- Wear red, white, & blue

Sept.   16-Early Release

Sept.   17 - 26  Cogat and ITBS testing