Weeks of 1/24/11 and 1/31/11

Thank you so much those of you who attended conferences this past weekend! This will help kick off a successful third quarter.

This week in science, we are focusing on clouds, the water cycle, types of storms, and other topics of weather and climate. In math, students are wrapping up multiplication with single digits. They will have a test over this chapter on Monday, January 31st. In Reading, students have just started reading Because of Winn Dixie. We will focus on primary and secondary characters, setting, predictions and vocabulary terms throughout the unit. In social studies, students have just begun a unit on government. They will learn about national, state, and local government. They will also learn about the 3 branches of government and the importance of each as well as the Constitution. In English, we just wrapped up the chapter on Verbs. Next, students will begin a unit on adjectives and adverbs.

Next week is Catholic Schools week. There are a great deal of exciting activities that have been planned for this week. Monday is Faith and Teamwork day. Students will get to dress down in colors of their favorite sports team. We will also have an all school mass that day. Tuesday is Pajama Day. Students get to wear their pajamas to school. They can also bring pillows and blankets for extended D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything And Read) Time. Wednesday is staff appreciation day. Thursday is Family Day. We will hold an awards ceremony in which the Peacemaker and Effort awards will be distributed for each class and the winners of the poster contest will be announced. Buddy classes will wear matching colored shirts this day. The third grade and their Pre-K buddies will wear white. Family members are welcome to visit the classrooms from 8:30-11:30. Finally, Family Game Night will be held from 6:00-8:00 that evening. Friday will be School Spirit Day. We will have a prayer service at 8:30 and the school olympics immediately following the prayer service.

Weeks of 10/18/10 and 10/25/10

The third grade is working diligently on their projects for All Saints Day. Each student has chosen a saint to research. They will write a short report on their saints, and the students will create a symbol to represent them. They will present their projects at St. Sylvester Church on the morning of Monday, November 2^nd. Please join us that day if you are able to.

Every Thursday, third grade participates in a program called Art Resources in Teaching. The students have been learning about the early art masterpieces of Ancient Mexico. Students had the privilege of visiting the Art Institute of Chicago and observing some of these masterpieces firsthand. Students then created their own Mayan Codices using Mesoamerican symbols to narrate a story about their lives. Next week, they will begin a new project in which they develop personal symbols and incorporate them into masks.

In Reading, students are excited about starting Charlotte's Web. Students have been reading through each chapter either as a whole class, in small groups, or in partners. After nearly each chapter, students will complete a journal entry in which they recall all of the important details from the chapter. Students will also complete other fun activities throughout the novel. Students will be quizzed after every 3 chapters. They will complete a review sheet in class. We will go over the answers to each review sheet at the end of that class, and students will be quizzed the following day.

In Science, students have just begun a new chapter on the life cycles of insects, spiders, amphibians, and mammals. Students will also explore how babies are like their parents and how babies learn. On Friday, students kicked off this chapter by exploring the different parts of a hard-boiled egg.

In Social Studies, students have been learning about different communities in our nation's history. These communities span back to the times before European settlers even arrived in North America and end in the early 1900s. Some important topics covered in this chapter include: Pocahontas, Jamestown, Christopher Columbus, slavery, The Boston Tea Party, the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolution, the Constitution, Daniel Boone, pioneers, Lewis and Clark, the Louisiana Territory and Louisiana Purchase, the Oregon Trail, Industrial Revolution, migration of African Americans from the south to the north, discrimination, the Transcontinental Railroad, assembly lines, the Model T car, skyscrapers, and more. As you can see, there is a lot of time and information covered in this chapter. It may be helpful to your child to go over this material each day.

In Math, students are finishing up the chapter on single digit addition and subtraction. Students are currently working on centers to help review for the chapter test. Students will start the review from the book on either Wednesday or Friday. We will go over the review the following day and play a review game. Their test will be either Monday, October 25th or Tuesday, October 26th. Students will then start the chapter on addition and subtraction with greater numbers and regrouping.

Reminders:

• Friday, October 29th is the Halloween Fun Fair during school hours as well as that evening.
• Students have a field trip coming up on Wednesday, November 3rd to see an opera. Permission slips will be sent home this Wednesday, October 20th.

Weeks of 9/13/10 and 9/20/10

Dear parents and families,

I know that it is usually a rough transition into third grade, but I hope by now, your child has started to catch on to the flow of things a bit more. Please remember that if your child is planning on receiving his or her first communion this year, he or she must attend one mass per month outside of school. He or she should bring in a program or saint card from the mass with his or her name on it. There are only two weekends left in the month, so please plan on attendance for one of those weekends. If you have any questions please feel free to send me a note or call me

We are only $56.00 away from reaching the goal for purchasing an air conditioner for the classroom. If you have not sent in $12.00 yet, and are willing to pay this amount, please do so at your earliest convenience.

Exciting News! Grades 3-6 have qualified for the Art Partners Residency program this year. This means that starting September 23rd, every Thursday for six weeks, our class will have a representative from the A.R.T. program teach a one hour art session to students. Also, on October 6th, the 3rd and 4th grade will take a field trip to the Art Institute. Please keep your eyes open for information regarding this trip at a later date.

Just a heads up. There will be a substitute on Friday. I have to leave town for a wedding this weekend and will need to fly out on Thursday evening.

In English, students have been working hard on learning the four different types of sentences. This week and next, students will continue to work on subjects and predicates and how to fix run-on sentences. Be on the look-out for an up and coming Chapter 1 test either late next week or in the following week.

Students will have a science test this Thursday over chapter C2, Materials of the Earth. A study guide will be distributed on Tuesday 9-14 and should be completed by Wednesday 9-15. Please continue to help your child study the concepts covered from the book review as well as in the study guide. Next week we will begin chapter A1, How Plants Live and Grow.

In reading we have been covering different skills from the basal text. The next two weeks we will be working on cause and effect, author's purpose, context clues, vocabulary, and comprehension. We will start the novel, Charlotte's Web within the next two to three weeks.

In math we have been reviewing concepts such as ordinal numbers, rounding to the nearest ten and hundred, understanding place value up to the thousands period, comparing and ordering numbers, and problem solving strategies. This week we will cover how to count, add, and subtract with money. We will also cover story problems which involve using money. On Friday, 9-17, students will complete the review from the book. Their test for chapter 1 will be on Tuesday, 9-21.

In our writer's workshop, students have been learning about fairy tales. They have learned about the requirement of a villain versus a good character. They have also been learning about problems and solutions. Students will continue to write their own fairy tales during our workshop of Fridays.

In Social Studies, students have been learning about different communities, such as rural, urban, and suburban. They have also been learning different map skills such as understanding cardinal and intermediate directions and how to use a map scale. This week we will learn about our natural resources, and about people and the environment. We will review this chapter next week, and the text will most likely be on Monday, 9-27.

Weeks of 4/26/10 and 5/3/10

This is an exciting week in third grade at St. Sylvester! Students have turned in their science fair projects on simple machines, and they look fantastic! The science fair will be held on Thursday and Friday of this week during school hours. They will be displayed for visitors on Thursday night from 5:30 - 7:00 pm. We have finished reading Because of Winn Dixie, and students are starting their shoebox dioramas today. They must choose an important scene from the story and recreate it within a shoebox. Students should include accurate information such as appropriate characters and setting details. The due date for this project is TBD. This Saturday there will be a practice held for First Communion from 9am - 12pm. All students that are taking part in first communion should attend the practice so they know what procedures to follow on the day of. Sunday, May 2nd, there will be an open house at the school from 11am - 3pm.

Next week we will begin a writing unit in Language Arts. Students will continue to work on division facts in Math. In Science, third grade will continue learning about the different body systems and their functions. We will wrap up the Economics chapter in Social Studies, and students will have a test over the unit. Sunday, May 9th, is First Communion.

Museum of Science and Industry Field Trip (Continued)

Museum of Science and Industry Field Trip

Weeks of 3/15/10 & 3/22/10

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Happy St. Patrick's Day! This week, students are wrapping up chapters in multiple subjects. There will be a lot of reviewing going on this week during and after school. Students have 2 tests on Friday: (1) science concepts such as matter, mass, volume, properties, chemical changes, and physical changes; and (2) social studies concepts such as national, state, and local governments, rules and laws, and taxes. These are fairly complex topics so students should spend multiple afternoons preparing for the test. In math, students just wrapped up the final multiplication chapter. We will begin division this week. Students will finish unit 5 in English this week as well. They will complete the review from the book on Thursday. They will have the entire weekend to work on this. It will be due Monday, and the test will be on Tuesday, March 23rd. We will have an all school mass this Friday.

Happy Spring! For the week of March 22nd, students will continue with chapters 18-20 of Because of Winn Dixie. There will be new vocabulary activities for these next chapters, so be on the lookout for these. Students will start Chapter 4 in Social Studies titled, "Communities at Work." This chapter will introduce subjects such as consumers, producers, profit, income, and many other economic topics. In English, students will begin the unit on pronouns. In Science, students will begin a chapter on forces, machines, and work. On April 29th, St. Sylvester will hold a school-wide science fair. All third graders will be expected to create a simple machine for this event. This chapter will help prepare students for this. More information regarding the science fair will be sent home at a later date.