March 24, 2017

Dear Families,

It was a busy full week back to school.

We've begun practicing for the SBAC testing.  Our practice includes learning test taking skills and becoming familiar with navigating the testing site.  Our first testing session will be the week of April 10th.  We will complete the English Language Arts section during that week.  Then during the week of May 8th, we will complete the math portion of the test.

Our new writing unit will be opinion writing.  Students will learn to write a claim, provide evidence,  and write a closing.  We look forward to sharing our topics and student responses with you.

In math, we are finishing Unit 4: Measurement and Fractions.  We will be taking our unit 4 test next week.  Then we will be moving into Unit 5: Multiplication, Division, and Area.

Next week we are holding our spring conferences.  Please use the Sign-Up Genius sent by your child's teacher to select a time.  We look forward to discussing your child's progress.

Have a great weekend,

The Third Grade Teachers

March 17, 2017

Dear Families,

This week was quite a whirlwind!  We hope you enjoyed the snow days as much as the students seemed to.  

In science, we began our engineering unit by discussing what engineers are and how technology impacts our everyday lives.  We will continue in the next few weeks with the oil spill unit that we mentioned in last week’s post.

In math, the students are continuing to discuss fractions.  We used paper to create models of unit fractions such as ½, ⅓, or ⅛.  This activity lead to discussions about how dividing a whole object into more pieces results in each piece being smaller.  Fractions are really a fun topic, and we will have a number of opportunities to use models and hands-on activities to explore.

In writing, we began working on a writing prompt where the students had to determine whether or not the rainforest animal they researched could survive in Hinesburg.  They had to draw from their knowledge base as well as the research they performed to make a claim.  The students then needed to support their claims with evidence to support their thinking.

In reading, we are continuing to respond to our reading in a variety of ways.  Students are working in literature groups, responding to questions using Google Classroom, and answering text-related questions.

We had a visit from the Tooth Tutor, who discussed proper brushing and flossing techniques to maintain healthy teeth and gums.  Ask your students to explain why their teeth are like castles with a moat surrounding them!  We also saw a performance by Drumshtick, which is a three-person percussion group from the Vermont Symphony Orchestra.

Finally, HCS will be coming together for a “Kindness Rocks” project, which was started by a woman in Massachusetts.  To learn more about the mission of the project, you can visit thekindnessrocksproject.com.  If you would like to participate, please send your child to school with a small rock (about the size of their palm), which will be painted and decorated by the students as a way to spread kindness around the community.  

Have a great weekend,

The Third Grade Teachers

March 12, 2017

Brrr!  It's cold outside.  I'm glad we chose to have our Open House last week with the anticipated storm arriving this week.  Thank you all for coming.  We hope you enjoyed hearing, seeing, and reading all about the rain forest.

This week we will begin transitioning to our engineering unit.  Students will have the opportunity to learn about environmental disasters and how scientists respond to them.  The unit will invite students to design and test methods to clean-up an oil spill.

In reading we will work on reading short articles (fiction and nonfiction) and responding to those articles.  This will include answering comprehension questions, comparing and contrasting texts, and writing responses.  All this work will help prepare the students for the SBAC assessments that will begin in April.

Our next writing unit will be focused around opinion writing.  Students will learn to make a claim and support their claim with evidence.  After practicing several pieces students will have the opportunity to chose a topic of their choice to take through the writing process and publish.  We look forward to sharing those with you.

Finally, we are wrapping up unit 4 with a focus on fractions.  Students will explore unit fractions, equivalent fractions, and begin adding and subtracting fractions.

February 24, 2017

Dear Families,

  It's hard to believe February break has arrived.  We did not assign any new spelling words or homework over break.  We hope students enjoy family time and time to pursue their interests.  

We have been very busy, as you know, with our rainforest project.  Please remember all animals are due Monday, March 6th so that we can display them before our performance.  We look forward to sharing our work with you at Open House on Thursday, March 9 from 6 to 7pm.  For the performance, we’ve asked the students to wear neutral colored clothing if possible.  Please do not buy anything new -- wear what you have!

Have a restful and relaxing break.

The Third Grade Teachers

February 17, 2017

February 17, 2017

Dear Families,

    Thank you for your contributions to our school food drive and fundraising themed basket, “Movie Night”.  We will continue to accept donations for both causes through Friday, February 24.  We also appreciate all the empty toilet tissue rolls that have been collected.  We are still in need of a few more.  

Math: In math, we began our measurement unit.  We started with measuring time, using a number line as a tool to calculate elapsed time.  We’ve also begun to explore mass, using balance scales as a tool for comparing the mass of various objects.

Literacy:  We’ve continued with our rainforest animal reports in writing.  The students were asked to write an introduction that hooks their reader in and states their main idea.  We also started writing our conclusion paragraph, which recaps our main idea and “ties a bow” on our report.

Science: We discussed biodiversity, which is the variety of living things in a particular habitat.  We modeled biodiversity by comparing the variety of animals in Vermont to the variety of animals in the rainforest.  We learned that over half of the world’s plants and animals live in the rainforest!

Technology: Throughout the year, our technology integration specialist has joined our classes to teach different lessons relating to use of technology resources in the classroom.  For our rainforest projects, students will learn how to search for images online that are available for reuse.

Have a great weekend,

The Third Grade Teachers

February 10, 2017

February 10, 2017

Dear Families,

We survived the cold, blustery weather this week!  The students had indoor recess twice this week due to the wind chill.  Hopefully, it will warm up next week so we can get outside.  

The students began practicing for our rainforest performance in music class this week.  As part of our performance, the children will make “binoculars” to wear.  We will be making them from empty toilet tissue rolls, so if you have any that you can send to school, we’d love to take them off your hands.

In addition, the Student Council is collecting goods for the Hinesburg Food Shelf.  Families can donate non-perishable food items along with dish soap, body wash, feminine products and toothpaste.  If you would like to donate, we will have boxes outside of our classrooms to collect items until February 24th.  

Math: In math, we finished unit 3, which involved addition and subtraction strategies for multi-digit numbers.  The students have been practicing the standard algorithm for both addition and subtraction, which is likely the method you learned in school.  We first built the conceptual knowledge, examining why this method works, prior to learning the technique.  We have begun unit 4, which explores measurement.  Our unit begins with a review of telling time, so that skill is a great one to practice at home.  We are also exploring fractions in Number Corner as well.

Literacy:  We are continuing to explore nonfiction text as a means of gathering information.  We’ve linked our literacy instruction to our rainforest unit, so we read various books about the rainforest.  We even discovered how monkeys are involved in the process of making chocolate!  We discussed why the rainforest is important to us in our daily lives.  Feel free to ask your child why the rainforest is sometimes referred to as the “lungs of the earth.”  We’ve also continued writing our rainforest animal reports, which have really begun to take shape.  The children are very enthusiastic, and they have loved sharing their facts with each other.

Science:  Continuing with our rainforest theme, we’ve been examining interdependence among species in an ecosystem.  The children created webs linking together different plants and animals, and we explored how the elimination of one species impacts other plants and animals.  The students continued to work on a habitat map, which displays where their animal lives in the world.  This activity helps us to link science and geography together.

Have a wonderful weekend, and stay warm!

The Third Grade Teachers

February 3, 2017

February 3, 2017

Dear Families,

We had a wonderful week!  A few notices went home with your child, including information regarding the PiE Basket Fundraiser.  The third grade will be working as a team to create our basket(s), all fitting the theme of “movie night.”  Please feel free to contribute any items that fit the theme by Friday, February 24th.  We’re excited to see what we can put together.

If requested, we also sent home order forms for the yearbook.  Orders can also be placed online using the link on the HCS homepage.  If you would like an order form, please let us know so we can send it home with your child.

Finally, we sent home a letter explaining an optional project related to our rainforest project that the students can do at home.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Thank you,

The Third Grade Teachers