Grade 3 with Mrs. D

Welcome to School Year 2018/2019!

I am so excited to be sharing this year with you!  Third grade is an exciting, yet challenging time in a student's growth.  I am looking forward to getting to know your child and help them learn and enjoy all they can in 3rd grade.

Here is a quick peek at some of the curriculum we will be starting with this year...

Math:  We will start the year by building on some place value and number sense skills students have already learned.  Soon we will be jumping right in to highlight of 3rd grade math...multiplication!  We'll start off by building an understanding of what it means to multiply and divide.  by the end of the year, students are expected to know all of the multiplication facts through 9 (but we might as well throw in 10 and 11!) fluently.  It's never to early to start working toward that goal!

Reading: We will begin by looking at different literary texts and thinking of strategies to help us better comprehend what we read.  Make sure you ask your student what they do while they read to help them understand!

Writing: We will begin the year by focusing on narrative writing and personal narratives in particular.  We'll look at different ideas to help us become stronger writers.

Social Studies:  We'll start off by talking about our government and what it means to be a responsible citizen of the United States.

Science:  After a quick review of the STEM process, we'll begin a really fun and interesting unit on rocks and minerals.

Here is a link to all of the Georgia Performance Standards we will cover this year:

3rd Grade Standards

 

November Update

Hello 3rd grade family,

We have been very busy here in room 105 recently. Before we know it, 3rd grade will be half-way over!  Here is what we have been working on:

Reading- We have been combining our reading and social studies recently.  We have been using text about Paul Revere to work on our asking and answering questions standard as well as locating the main idea.

Writing- We are almost finished with our whole-group informational writing piece about fossils.  Next, students will use what they have learned and write an independent informational piece.

Math- We have been spending al lot of time learning to apply our multiplication and division skills.  The first 9 weeks, we talked about what multiplying is.  Now we need to look for patterns and use that knowledge to solve problems.  

And that means....it's time to learn those facts!!!!  We will be working on fact fluency here in school, but your third grader will need to practice at home.  One of the best ways to master the facts is still good ol' flashcards.  Pick 5 or 6 facts at a time, then move on once those are memorized. There are also plenty of good websites for fluency.  Two of my favorites are multiplication.com and ABCya.com.  We have practiced a few games here at school.

Parents, we have been having some behavior issues at school.  Please remind your child of the important learning skills they need to use every day in 3rd grade: listening, participating and focus.  We have had to spend a lot of our precious learning time redirecting behavior. Please check your child's behavior checkbooks daily to make sure they are not making behavior choices that keep them or their classmates from learning.

 

Here is a link to the Parent School Climate survey:

http://apps.gadoe.org/schoolclimate/parents.nsf/Survey.xsp

 

Believe it or not, it won't be long until it's time to start planning our class holiday party.  Please let me know if you are interested in being involved in the planning process.  I will be sending out information for snack donations after Thanksgiving break.

 

Don't forget...no school for the students on Tuesday, November 8!  Enjoy your day!

 

 

Welcome to 3rd Grade!

Hello families and welcome to our class for 3rd grade. Third grade is such an exciting time and I am thrilled to be a part of your student's year.  We have been busy getting back in the habits of school and learning our new procedures and expectations.  I am sure they have been going home tired each day, but hopefully with some good stories to tell and ideas to share.

Here is our daily schedule as of now.  We may have to be flexible and switch a few areas around...

7:15-7:50- Wake Up with words (a school-wide time of focused, leveled reading)

7:50-8:00- Attendance, announcements, etc.

8:00-8:05- cursive letter/word of the day

8:05-8:45- Morning Math

8:45-9:50 Reading Workshop

9:55-10:55- Specials

10:55-11:40- Writing workshop

11:44-12:14- lunch

12:15-12:35- restroom break/read aloud

12:35-12:50- recess

12:50-1:45 Math workshop

1:45-2:10- Science/social Studies

2:20-2:20- pack up, clean up, sign agendas

2:20- dismissal

I hope you will join us on September 1st for Open House.  This will be an opportunity to come hear more about our day and what to expect in our day.  Look for more information coming home soon!

Here is what we are learning right now:

Math- We are reviewing place value and getting ready to begin reviewing addition and subtraction strategies.

Reading- We are setting up what our reader's workshop will look like each day and talking about strategies to help us reach our first standard( reading fluently on a 3rd grade (or beyond) level by the end of the year)

Social Studies- We are learning about the influence the ancient Greek culture had on the government, architecture and sports of our country. 

Writing- Our class has been talking about where writers get ideas and setting up our writer's notebooks to help us have ideas to pull from when writing.  Soon, we will begin writing narratives.

Again, I am looking forward to a wonderful year learning and growing together!  Please don't hesitate to let me know if you ever have questions or concerns.

Thank you for supporting our classroom!

Stacy Domke

We made it to May!

Hello Families!  We have worked so hard and made it to May!  Only 18 more days of school this year.  We still have a lot to  cover to make sure we are ready for next year, so please remind your student to come ready to work every day!

There are many dates you'll want to remember between now and the end of the year:

May 6th- Spring Fling basket donations due

May 11th- Volunteer brunch

May 13th- Spring Fling

May 23rd- Field Day

May 24th/25th- Early Release

May 25th- last day of school!

Thank you so much to those of you who have sent in donations for our Spring Fling baskets.  We are still in need of many more items to make our baskets a successful part of the raffle to raise money for our school.  Please send whatever you are able by May 6th.

Now that it is warm outside, recess has become a lot more active.  Please remind your student that if they are going to run and play, they need to wear appropriate shoes.  We have had several stubbed toes from running in flip-flops.  Also, our room can get quite chilly from the air conditioning, so you may want to send your child with a light sweater or jacket.

I just want to take a moment to let you know how proud I am of my students' hard work on the Milestone Assessments.  They all focused and worked so hard on that challenging task!  Great job!

Happy Spring!

Hellos Families and Happy Spring!  This year is really flying by, isn't it?  Here are a few things to keep you in the know...

• We have begun getting ready for the Milestone Assessment coming up in a few weeks (April 13-19 plus some make-up days).  The most important thing you can do to help your child do their best is to stay positive!, encourage them to do their most carful work and to take their time.  Please make sure your child is well rested on those days and gets to school on time each day.  I'll will be sending home more information on how to best help your child as the assessment gets closer.
• Tonight, March 17th is the 2nd and 3rd grade musical performance.  I hope everyone enjoys the show!
• Be on the lookout for a parent involvement survey coming home in folders this week.  Your participation is very helpful for our school's planning in the future.
• Individual and class pictures will be taken next Friday, March 25th.  Everyone will be part of our class picture (so dress nicely from your heads to your feet) but only those who purchase will have individual pictures taken. Information will be coming home in folders this week, but please send in any orders on the day of pictures.
• Report cards will be sent home next Tuesday, March 22.  If you would like to meet to discuss your child's progress, just let me know. 
• We have been having some trouble with homework completion in our class.  Please check in on your child to make sure they are keeping up with their homework.  It especially important now as we are reviewing for the Milestone. 

Enjoy this beautiful weather and remember...only 11 (school)days until Spring Break!!!!

 

 

 

 

Happy New Year!

Hope everyone's new year is off to a great start!  We have been working hard here in the 3rd grade!

We are getting excited for our field trip to Tellus Museum in a few weeks.  Thank you to everyone who has sent in their permission slips and donation.  If you still need to send in yours, please do so as soon as you can.  We need to make sure we have enough money to cover all of our students.

2nd and 3rd grade will be participating in a musical performance on March 17th.  Be on the lookout for information coming home soon from Dr. Champion.

Thursday, January 28th is math night at our school!  I will be there teaching students and parents how to play math games at home that will help reinforce 3rd grade math skills.  If you come, you will have to opportunity to hear Mrs. McDill explain some math strategies we use as part of Common Core and take home several games to play with your student.  I hope to see you there!

Here is what we are working on:

Math-fractions!  We have been identifying fractions and now we are ready to begin comparing them and finding equivalent fractions.  Cooking at home is a great way to practice using fractions with your child.

Reading-  We have been comparing and contrasting texts by the same author.  We have especially been focusing on writing about ways the settings, plots and themes are different and alike. Now we are going to spend some time talking about the point of view (opinions) of the characters and narrators in the texts we read. 

Science- We are in the middle of one of most interesting units-Georgia habitats!  We are identifying animals and plants found in each habitat.  We will begin looking at their adaptations and how changes to the habitats affect those living there.

Writing- We have been writing about many of the reading standards we are currently working on.  Short answer writing is a big part of the Milestone test coming up in April.  This will give the students practice on this skill now.

Speaking of the Milestone...we have begun talking about the test and what to expect in April.  I continue to remind the students that I am teaching them the same standards that will be on the Milestone, so if they are working hard and paying attention, there will be no surprises!  You will begin to see websites and practice information coming home so you will know what to expect too!

Thank you for your continuing support of our class and your student's learning!

 

Happy Fall!

Well, it's a rainy, cool day.  Looks like Fall is officially here in Acworth.  Please make sure your 3rd grader is coming to school dressed appropriately.  Our room can get quite chilly, so some sort of jacket or sweater might be a good idea.

It was so great to see everyone last week at conferences! I look forward to that week every year.  It's always nice to check in and make sure we are all on the same page as far as your child's success is concerned.  Thanks so much for making the time to come to your conference. 

Thank you also for returning the field trip interest sheet.  I will let you know once we tally all the results and decide if a trip to Tellus is in the future for our 3rd graders.

Here is what we are working on...

Reading- We are integrating our reading standards and social studies standards right now.  We are looking for text evidence to support our learning as we read about Paul Revere.

Math- we are reviewing the properties of multiplication this week.  We will spend a lot of time this 9 weeks polishing some of the standards we worked on in the first grading period.  Don't forget to take advantage of "First in Math" at home.  This is a wonderful tool to help your child work on math skills.  Your 3rd grader should know how to log on at home.

Writing- We have been working on a fantasy narrative piece about our talking pets!  The class is really getting creative.  They are also working on adding some dialogue to their piece.

Math compacting is going really well!  It is fun to hear all the students come back to our class and share the different ideas and ways they  are learning.

Look out for information on our canned food and personal care item drive that will be going on until the Thanksgiving break.  That is such a wonderful opportunity to teach our students about looking out for each other.

As always, thank you so much for your support in our class!

 

 

We made it!

I hope everyone has a great Fall Break!  The students have definitely earned some time to rest and relax.

Just a few quick thing...

We will have PE the Monday we come back, so wear your tennis shoes!

Please make sure you look through your child's weekly folder they brought home today.  There is lots of good information in there for you.  I also sent home the RAZ Kids login information.  I would love to see some activity over the break!

We will be testing the 2 weeks after Fall Break.  COGAT is 9/29-10/1 and IOWA is 10/5-10/9.  Please make sure your child is well-rested and well-fed on those days.  And, of course, please make sure they are here on time!

 

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Domke

I'm Back!

Well, it took me a little while to change over from "News and Notes in 2nd grade" to our 3rd grade blog, but here we are! 

I hope everyone has settled back into their school routine.  Can you believe we are half-way through the first grading period?  This class is doing great!  The new additions we have are fitting right in and really added something to our group.  Seems like we've always all been together!

Here is what we are working on:

Reading- Standard: Recount stories, including fables, folktales and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.  We are using our same graphic organizer from 2nd grade (Somebody...Wanted...But...So...Then...) to retell traditional literature.  But this year we are adding more details such as setting, character traits and motivation.  Everyone is doing a great job and we are reading some really entertaining stories.  Make sure you are asking your reader questions about these elements at home when they read or you are reading together.

Writing- standard:  Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective techniques, descriptive details and clear event sequences.  We have been working through the writing process on personal narratives for about 2 weeks.  Their stories are wonderful and they have really been working hard to add descriptive details and revise to make their writing the best it can be.  We are almost ready to publish them in a class book.  I hope you'll be able to come in and read it sometime.

Math-  Fluently add and subtract within 1,000 using strategies based on place value, properties of addition and the relationship between addition and subtraction.  After a review of place value and number sense, we have been reviewing many of the strategies we learned last year, but bumping them up with greater numbers.  Many students are still struggling with their single digit facts (3+5, 6+2, etc.)  With out a fluent knowledge of those facts, moving on in math will be difficult.  If you see your child using their fingers to add or really having trouble remembering the facts, please work with them.

Social Studies- We are taking a social studies break after our Greece and Democracy unit.  It was very interesting to learn about all the ways ancient Greece influenced our daily life today.  We also worked on some map skills.  Many students are still having trouble with latitude and longitude.  We will spend some more time on that topic here, but a little home review would be great!

Science-  We have started our rocks and minerals unit!  This one is always a 3rd grade favorite!  We are looking at the properties of rocks and minerals and will be talking about the rock cycle soon.  Ask your budding scientist what they know about minerals!

 

I'm sure you have seen that September is Attendance Awareness month.  Please remember how important it is that your 3rd grader is here everyday they can be.  Our learning starts right away at 8:00, so being late, even by 20 minutes, could mean they miss a whole subject for that day.  Also, please help your child get here as early as possible.  I always feel like students who get here in time to leisurely unpack and get settled in before learning starts, have a much smoother start to their day.

As always, please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns: [email protected].

Thanks for a great start to another fabulous year!

Mrs. Domke

Schedule Change

First, I want to remind you about tonight's "Me on the Map" event.  It starts at 6:00 in the gym.  I really hope you will be able to make it!  Stop by the table as you walk in to say hi and pick up your passport!

For the 2 weeks after Spring Break we will have a  change to our daily schedule.  To accommodate the grades that will be taking the Georgia Milestone test (beginning Wednesday, April 15)  our lunch time will be moved to 10:30-11:00.  Our specials classes will be 11:45-12:15.  This change will probably last until make-up tests are done on April 23.  Second grade will not be testing and will continue to learn as usual.

I hope you have a fabulous and safe Spring Break!  Make sure to read every day and work on memorizing the addition facts to 20!