May 2016
It is hard to believe that the third nine weeks is over and there are only 6 weeks of school left! This year has absolutely gone by in the blink of an eye. This month is a very important one for the third graders. Our SOL testing window begins on Tuesday, May 17 th .
Students will take tests in both math and reading spread over two days each. Students will also be assessed on the new science and social studies Performance Assessments. We will spend time this month reviewing in school to prepare students for these important assessments but you can review for these tests at home as well.
Reviewing math skills at home will help support our preparation in school. If you have a computer at home, you can access the
Virginia Department of Education website to see sample SOL questions which students can practice.
This is the students first year participating in SOL testing. There are some things you can do to help ensure your child performs at their best for each of these important assessments. On testing days, it is essential that your child is in school on time. Testing will be completed online and classes will be taking tests in shifts. The morning shift starts at 8:15 A.M. and the afternoon shift starts at
12:00 P.M. Any student who arrives at school after testing begins will not be permitted in the classroom until after testing is complete. Any test that is missed will have to be made up on another day. Your child needs to have a healthy breakfast in the morning. Because these assessments often take more than 90 minutes, it is important that they are well fed so they are able to concentrate. It is important that your child is getting plenty of sleep each night. A healthy, well rested child will perform at their best. It is also important to help your child relax each evening as these assessments are stressful.
A reminder to all parents – when you are visiting the school, you must present your ID every time you enter the building. You will also be asked to state the reason for your visit. You need to sign in and out of the office every time. We thank you for your patience as we try to keep all the children of Catoctin safe and secure.
The PTA will be celebrating Staff Appreciation Week during the week of May 2 nd – 6 th . If you would like to participate in the events during this week, please contact the PTA.
If you have any questions, please contact your child’s teacher.
Thank you,
The Third Grade Team
In May, we will be studying the following:
Reading:
-Comprehension Strategies
-Predicting
-Sequencing
-Summarizing
-Making Inferences
-Writing story summaries/retelling
-Reading Fluency
Writing:
-Persuasive Writing
-Poetry
-Cursive
Math:
-Editing Strategies
- Measurement test – May 10
- Review for SOL’s th
Science:
- Plants and Soils test – May
- Review for SOL’s
Social Studies:
Review for SOL’s
After May 13 th
Cafeteria News
, students will no longer be permitted to charge lunches. Please make sure you prepay your account as soon as possible.

May 2 nd – 6 th –
Staff Appreciation Week
May 10 th –
Muffins with Mom
7:00 A.M. Cafeteria
May 17 th –
Reading SOL Day 1
May 18 th –
Interims go Home
Reading SOL Day 2
May 23 rd –
Math SOL Day 1
Social Studies
Maps
Explorers
Greece
Rome
Government
Mali
Economics
Native
Americans
Science
Matter
Investigations
Water cycles
Space cycles
Animals
Ecosystems
Math
Geometry
Place value
Rounding
Money
Multiplication
Division
Resources Probability
Simple machines Addition and subtraction
Graphing
Fractions
Measurement
Time
May 24 th –
Math SOL Day 2
May 30 th –
Memorial Day – No School
This month, we will be working on typing up poems for our
Poetry unit.
We are running out of school supplies – pencils, glue sticks, tissues. If there is anything you can donate to our classroom, we would really appreciate it.
DRA testing will also be taking place this month. We will be assessing students to determine their reading level for the end th of third grade. The testing window will be between May 11 and June 6 th . Students need to pass both a fiction and nonfiction passage this year. If they have already done that to the end of grade level standard, they are done being tested.
If they haven’t done that yet this year, they will be tested during the window.
It is important for students to do well on their SOL assessments but they shouldn’t feel pressured. Reward students at home for all their hard work in school with some family time to play games and relax.
Comments? Questions? Concerns?
School Phone: (571) 252-2940
Alaina.Smith@lcps.org
Kelli.bolden@lcps.org
Carolyn.knight@lcps.org
Michael.steed@lcps.org
Email Reminder
Please don’t use email for emergencies or last minute dismissal changes. We don’t always get these messages before the end of the school day. Please call the school instead so these messages don’t get missed.