Finally! This year's blog begins...

First Blog for Grade 3 2012-2013

Am happy to be finally to be re-aquainting myself with the blog started last year. Apologies for taking so long! Ms. Howie

My intention for this blog is to let you know what we are doing in class, to share information on how your child is learning, to give some helpful ideas for work at home for those who want to support your child's learning and the fun of sharing what your child's day looks like. If you have any requests or ideas for this blog, please feel free to make suggestions and I will do my best to include your ideas. 

 Grade 3's have been very busy this term in Math. We have worked on place value, addition and patterns (number patterns and geometric patterns). If you would like to do some extra practice with your child knowing their addition facts quickly without counting on fingers will be a big help. We have practiced doubles (example 6+6), near doubles (6+6 can help me with 6+7) and will now work on number pairs that make 10 (9+1, 8+2, 7+3, 6+4, 5+5). Ask these questions like this: 6+ __=10

Here is a group of students learning 2 digit addition and explaining how it works. You can ask a question with or without re-grouping and have your child explain how they can get the answer.

Sample problem:   47 + 35  We are looking for each child to explain that they can add up the ones,
 7+5 = 12.  Now they can explain how they will trade tens ones for a 10 rod.  Next add up the tens digits (4 tens + 3 tens is the same as 40+30=70. BUT now they need to add that extra ten rod to make 80 and put back the ones to explain the answer 82.

Why go to all this trouble instead of just using the standard way 47  ????  
                                                                                             + 35
Research has shown that students who can understand and explain their thinking will do better in Math.We used base 10 blocks to help children see the trading in a hands on way. 

Our word work this week is going to continue to be with the "ai" vowel pattern as many students are still finding it difficult.  Examples are : main, grain, pain, stain, chain, rain, train, drain, plain, claim, aim,wait, bait, paint, faint, saint. Some more difficult words for students who are ready for a challenge are : strait, straight, contain, waiter, waitress, Spain and Ukraine. The students came up with these words. We explore the meanings of them as well as syllables, consonant blends and adding suffixes. Anchor charts such as these, along with the alphabet help students generate their own words.

In Science we are just beginning a unit on forces. Forces can be a push or a pull. Forces can change the speed, direction, or shape of an object. A force can start or stop an object from moving. Some forces are buoyancy, gravity, magnetism, muscular, static electricity.
 Fun web sites to visit are http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/lab/forces.html and http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/6_7/forces_movement.shtm


                                       Pull                   Push

Grade 3's prepare for EQAO

We are very busy these days polishing our reading responses, writing and Math problems in preparation for next month's EQAO assessments. It is important to know that we don't teach to the test, the test is written to show best practices in teaching and learning. If you would like to look at previous years tests go to eqao.com, go to parent resources, then assessments for reading etc... and scroll down until you see the tests from 2010-2011 and so on. You can even see what the evaluators are looking for by checking the scoring guide. Time will be spent making sure the students are not worried yet try their best by working as hard as they can.

We were very lucky in March to have a student from Rocks and Rings share their love of curling with the classes at St. Patrick. Below are some photos.

                                    

In Math we are working on measuring. We have completed linear measurement, perimeter, area and comparing measurements. Students had problems where they had to compare for example 5 m, 480 cm, and 60 cm to put them in order.  We will begin to measure mass and capacity next week. Students will have a look at home to find things that are measured in litres and millilitres or grams and kilograms. It is really important that they can associate these measurements with real life tasks and objects.

     

 In Math we are also learning about multiplication. Practicing times tables for a few minutes each day will help your child master patterns. Start with the 2X tables and then 5X. A website for quizzes and flash cards is www.multiplication.com 

Hope you enjoyed the Easter cards the students made. They definitely enjoyed making them. We used marshmallows for the yellow parts. Creativity and humour were in the air as everyone took great care in making the perfect chicks!

 In Science we are just beginning our unit on Plants. Again it is really important that children have a chance to explore their themes in real life activities as much as possible. We will first concentrate on the parts of the flower and the parts of the plant. Each part will be examined as we talk about how they contribute to the survival of the plant.

We will plant bean seeds this week. They sprout quickly and will give us a chance to see how the seed cracks open, sends out roots and then tiny leaves.

As you eat fruits and vegetables take time to talk about what part of the plant they come from. Children can also learn the names of the trees, shrubs and flowering plants in your yard or on a nature walk. The tulips that we planted in the fall are in bloom with more to come hopefully!

In language we are writing persuasive letters which will be on the blog next week. We listened to an amazing broadcast posted on the CBC radio 1 website. We used it to describe what the creators of the native legend used to make it interesting: native drums, native singing, sound effects, animal sounds, expressive storytelling and parts told in the authentic Cayuga dialect. We also used the story to explore the parts of a narrative: characters, setting, problem and solution. Students then came up with ideas as to why the story was told: examples were given such as to explain the Big Dipper, to show courage, to explain the cycle of life, to explain patience. Pretty good ideas for Grade 3's who are learning to go deeper into the text. http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/episodes/legends/2012/02/29/legends-of-the-cayuga/ There are several legends from a variety of First Nations. It is called The Legends Project and is beautifully done. http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/episodes/legends/ Logan went home and told his brother the story of The Hunting of Ugly Bear and Bobby then re-told a legend he remembered to Logan. We hope to dramatize our own legend using sound and art and drama.

If you have a chance would you please let me know if you read the blog regularly and if there is any other information you would like to see. As your child has probably told you we do not take pictures of their faces even though that would be lots of fun for both you and your child. Safety in today's connected world is the reason of course.

Finishing up Money

Our spelling patterns for this week are words that end in "k" or "ck".  Words that show this pattern are soak, bark, cheek, break, bank, tusk, clock, check, luck, sack, and trick. I encourage students to spell any word with these patterns even if is not on the list by listening for the sounds. Some students work on fewer words. Spending time on Spelling City is a great way to practice the words. Just Google Spelling City.





As we finish our unit on money it is still a good idea for most students to practice counting coins and bills up to $10. Pretend charge them for their supper! to watch TV! to use electricity for electronic games! We are doing multi-step problems where students need to find out how much each person has by counting the amounts. Then the amounts are compared to find the difference. We will also find how much change a person will get after spending a certain amount. This gives us a chance to review standard usbtraction (now with zeroes) or using other strategies such as counting up.

Example: Sammy has $5.00 and he spends $1.95 for a ball and  $2.50 for a pack of cards. How much does he have left? Or how much more do the cards cost? Or I may show the coins and students have to count them to get the amounts.

                                        anchor chart >>>>



We are so grateful to have Mrs. Van Dyk an amazing volunteer who comes twice a week to help some students especially with reading and math. She is Erik's grandmother and she is a retired teacher. One of the programs she helps with is readinga-z.com. The online books are at levels for different abilities. Anyone can obtain a subscription. The books are also in French!

It is SO important for students to read frequently at home in addition to what we do at school. Talk to your child about what they are reading. What happened in this chapter? What do you think will happen next? Why do you think the author wrote this text? Ask students to give an opinion about the story or information and ask them to prove or justify their point of view.

Our posters on structures were magnificent! Students gathered very interesting structures and put their posters together by themselves. They had to describe features of their structures that made them stable or unique. Students also learned how to place their pictures and use the space well to display their work. We used what we knew in Science to do a very sharp art activity! Students drew a cityscape learning how to make buildings behind other buildings. They used pastels and thin water paint. The junior teachers were admiring these marvelous paintings!

In the money

This week we have started money. Looking at the curriculum, students need to know how to count, show, make change, and solve problems with amounts up to $10. Skills for doing this include counting by 25's (this is the hardest for most children), 10's, 5's and of course 1's. You can help your child practice by making a game out of "paying" for things. Have a money jar and charge them for their supper or TV privileges, or electricity for their games, clean clothes, a drive to practice etc... Your child has to get the amount from a money jar and "pay" you. The money goes back into the jar of course. Start with amounts under $1, then $2 and so on if they are having trouble. Student who find it easier can begin with higher amounts. Then they can progress to making change.

As you can see our amaryllis has been growing beautifully and is eagerly checked each day! Thank you again Desmond for sharing this amazing huge flower with our class.

Words for this week focus on the sound "oi" and "oy". Everyone should be visiting www.spellingcity.com 3-4 times a week.

4 supports in the centre and an unbalanced  load. Look out!

More fun with structures included an activity where 4 supports were placed in the centre of a box. A load was placed on the box in a balanced way and an unstable way. Then the same idea was repeated with the 4 supports in the 4 corners of the box. The variety of pictures displayed on each child's posters was amazing. Everything from a snail shell to modern skyscrapers.

4 supports in the centre and a balanced load

supports in the corners and a balanced load

We talked about personal hygiene today: brushing teeth, brushing hair, bathing regularly, clean nails and so on.   Your child should now be leaving the house every morning in style! Well maybe... We did talk about presenting your best self to the world as you go about your day.

We will be setting personal goals for getting our hearts ready for Easter during the season of Lent. Soon our class will begin theme 3 in family Life. It will be a good time to have your own discussion on this topic. Parents are welcome to have their children bring home a copy of the book to know exactly what we will be covering.

We are currently reading Because of Winn-Dixie an engaging book that the students beg to hear every day. Parts are very funny but there are serious scenes too that have really touched the children's hearts. You can ask your child to tell you about the story. We will watch the movie when we are finished.





Please check and sign your child's agenda every night to see if there are any reminders or homework.

AGENDA --------- Signed


Look at our beautiful art! 

Finishing 3D shapes

This week we will focus on comparing prisms and pyramids using problems.  PBL (problem based learning) lets students explore ideas at first in small groups and then after enough practice they are ready to try on their own. We look at the solutions as a class and find the good ideas that each group has. These good ideas go onto an anchor chart which the students help to build. The anchor chart continues to evolve as we discover how best to solve a certain kind of task. When the anchor chart is complete and students are ready, a final, independent problem is done. Above is our first problem: Exploring the 2D shapes in a 3D shape.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks3bitesize/maths/shape_space/3d_shapes/revise1.shtml

Your child can learn the names of the 3D shapes. They are named after the base.

We looked at congruent faces on boxes. 

NEW WORDS FOR THIS WEEK:   people, friend, link, stick, bike. When should I use "ck"? When should I use a silent "e" at the end of a word.

Our Science unit (Stable Structures) fits perfectly with our Math unit! We looked at this model structure brought in by Jaden Smith.
Ask your child if they can see what makes the CN Tower a stable structure. Check that they have brought home the note that describes the 6-10 pictures they need for next Monday,Feb.27.

Look at the bulb that Desmond gave us to grow! It is an amaryllis and we will show you how much it has grown again next week! It will help us on the next Science unit on plants.

We have been focusing on "Asking Questions" in our reading. A good reader asks themselves questions before, during and after they read. You and your child can discuss what they are reading by exploring questions such as I wonder why the author wrote this text? I wonder if the text is fiction or non-fiction? Would the ending be the same if something else happened? I would like to know what happens to the main character after the story? I still have some questions about the topic. Discussing their reading with you will help your child become a better reader.