Third Grade News
September 2015
What an exciting start we had to our new school year! We spent the first
week of school building community in our classroom and learning daily routines
and procedures. By the second week, we jumped right into all subject areas
with the year-long goal of making learning both meaningful and enjoyable. I am
very happy with how well the students seem to be adjusting to third grade.
It was nice to meet many parents prior to the start of school at the
Open House, as well as at Back-to-School Night. I am sorry if I did not get
the chance to speak with you personally, but please know you can always send
an email or we can set up a time to chat in person. I am looking forward to
working with you and your child during this very exciting school year. Feel free
to contact me at any time if you have questions or concerns. The classroom
number is 610-627-7116. My e-mail address is sherman@rtmsd.org.
-Stephanie Herman
Mark Your Calendars







Friday, 10/2: Student Council Class Elections
Friday, 10/2: Box Tops DUE!
Tuesday, 10/6: PTG Meeting, 7:00 PM
Friday, 10/9: Bingo Night, 6:00 PM
Monday, 10/12: Inservice, No School for Students
Thursday, 10/15: Grandparent/Special Friends Day, 9:15-10:00
Friday, 10/30: Halloween Parade and Party, 1:45-3:15
Curriculum Corner
In Reader’s Workshop, we began our year examining some of the reading
practices that students use, and how we can become better readers. We learned
how to choose “just right” books, who we are as readers, and what good readers do.
Students will be learning and practicing the Reader’s Workshop routine, such as
meeting in small groups, independent reading, responding to what they are reading,
and building stamina while reading independently.
Writer’s Workshop has begun! This is a block of our day that is devoted
entirely to writing. Students have been working toward independently finding topics
to write about in a “fast and furious” manner and are most excited about writing
their first personal narrative. This personal narrative focuses on a “seed” of a story;
instead of telling the whole “watermelon” story, students choose a smaller “seed”
moment from the bigger picture. We plan on doing a lot of writing, and the students
are looking forward to publishing many writing pieces this year!
In Social Studies, we started out the year with our unit on continents and
oceans. Not only did we learn where each is located on a map, but we can put them in
order from largest to smallest. I’m serious…just ask your child and they will be able
to recite them from memory. We have been practicing our study skills, too! In
addition, students learned where their community is located in the world through a
fun Visual Discovery activity. Students acted as space shuttle astronauts who were
returning to Earth and learned about the geographic features of the globe as they
got nearer and nearer to their landing site. We had a BLAST!!!
In Math, we have been focusing on interpreting the meaning of multiplication
and division, and using patterns to begin to build fluency with multiplication facts.
Students are using strategies such as repeated addition, number lines, and arrays in
order to develop an understanding that we use multiplication to combine a number of
equal groups. It is important that students accurately and efficiently solve math
problems in ways that make sense to them. At home, encourage your child to explain
his/her math thinking to you.
Keep your eyes open for quiz and test dates in assignment books!
ALL study guides are to be signed and returned to school.
KidBiz
Students will be shown how to work through an article on KidBiz in class. Once this
happens, they will have the chance to explore Kid Biz at home. The expectation is that all
students will complete at least one article as part of their weekly homework in order to
become comfortable with the program and routine. This number may increase to two
articles once the students become more comfortable with the program. KidBiz Tracking
Sheets must be filled out, signed by a parent, and brought back to school each Friday to
be checked. In order to count, they must get at least a 75% on their first try score. To
help with this, please encourage your child to take their time, read all of the questions
carefully before making their choice, and to use the “refer to article” feature. **In
school, your child took a brief assessment to determine their "just right" level of the
text in KidBiz, which means they should be able to work independently to complete the
activities. As tempting as it may be, please DO NOT assist your child with answering
questions, as it will adjust their level of text to your level. Please let me know if you have
any questions.
Oral Math Facts
Very soon, students will be assigned to their Oral Math levels in Tools for Success
and will be responsible for practicing their math facts at home every night!
Student Council
On Friday, October 2nd, we will be electing two Student Council representatives from
our class (one boy and one girl). Information will be sent home soon. Please read this
information and discuss the responsibility with your child. Each interested candidate is
expected to prepare a written speech to read to the class.
Box Tops
Box Top collection is right around the corner! Don’t forget to clip your Box Tops
and send them in by Friday, October 2nd. The money we receive from Box Tops is used to
help purchase new equipment for our classrooms, and helps the school to have special
events for our students.