Welcome to 3FT!

Dear Parents,

Here is some important information about our year together.

SCHOOL SUPPLIES:

The school supplies have been purchased by Robina Baker School again this year. We will be using Netbook computers on a regular basis in Grade 3, so your child will need their own headset as soon as possible.

SNACK/LUNCH:

We will be giving the students a snack break after morning recess. This will allow the students to use their recess for playing and socializing with their peers. Students will go for afternoon recess and then the students will eat in their classrooms. Students are encouraged to be responsible for garbage and leftovers. Food that isn’t eaten is usually sent home so that parents are aware. Trading food at lunch or snack time is discouraged in our classroom.

PLANNERS/HOMEWORK:

We will be using planners and mailbags throughout the school year. Please read over the items in your child’s planner each day and initial. The mailbag will be used for school notes, home reading books and any homework that needs to be complete. Please return both items to school daily.

Students will have homework at times. This may be basic math facts, completing unfinished class work, or weekly Journal writing. If your child is absent, missed work may be sent home. Please be sure that homework comes back when your child returns to school, even if it is not yet finished. The materials may be needed for the next lessons and sometimes there is time during the next day to catch up on work that was missed.

LIBRARY:

        3FT has a library period on Friday. Your child can borrow 2 books and 1 magazine or 3 books for the week to read at home. Library books must be returned by the following Friday in order to borrow new books.

GYM:

        3FT will have Gym on a daily basis with Mr. T. Henderson. Proper fitting indoor shoes are needed for Gym.

 MUSIC:

          Students will have scheduled Music blocks every week with Mrs. C. Stanski.

HOME READING:

Daily Home Reading practice is strongly encouraged. Students can choose their own Home Reading material from the Library, our classroom collection of books, books at home, magazines or anything else that parents consider to be suitable as reading practice for their child.

LANGUAGE ARTS:

        “All About Me” will be our first writing project. The students will be working on this in class and be publishing a book all about them. We will be using the Daily 5 program regularly and a “Back and Forth” Home Journal which will start next week. We will also begin practicing cursive writing.

Each Monday, students will be introduced to 15 new words for the week. These words will be written in the planner so they have them at home to practice. The spelling list will also be on a website called spellingcity.com. You can find our class list by clicking on “Find A List” and typing in our classroom name, ThirdGradeThoughts. The list will appear and your child can start using it to play games using the words of the week. We will also be working on these words in class during “Word Work” which is part of our Daily 5 Language Arts program. These words will then become part of our classroom Word Wall. Our goal is to master these words in our daily writing.

MATH:

        We will begin with “Patterning”. Students will use patterns to describe the world and to solve problems.

          A Mad Minute program will begin within the next week, starting with addition.

          We will also have a weekly Math problem that will be sent home in their POW duotangs each Friday.

SCIENCE:

Our first topic in Science is Rocks and Minerals. We will begin with a Rock Walk. A separate note will cover the details of this activity. Students will need an egg carton to collect their rocks in. We will eat our lunch at the Lion’s Park. If the weather is rainy, we will re-schedule.

 SOCIAL:

In Grade 3 we will be studying the quality of life in four countries- India, Tunisia, Ukraine and Peru. We will begin with a look at maps of our town, province, country and then the world. From there, we begin to look more closely at how people around the world are different in many ways and alike in others. Special days will be held in which we will celebrate the culture of each of the four countries we study.

TOP 3 FOR MY CHILD:

Attached to this newsletter is a yellow sheet titled, “Top 3 For My Child”. Please fill it in as best as you can and send it back in by Monday, September 8^th.  We look forward to reading your thoughts about your child’s learning.

PARENT VOLUNTEERS:

        Our classroom door is always open if you would like to volunteer. Throughout the school year there will also be a variety of special classroom activities and celebrations. We encourage you to attend these functions if you are available.

KEEP IN TOUCH:

We will be sending home newsletters on a regular basis to keep you informed of activities happening within the classroom.

Another form of home/school communication this year will be our blog called 3FT Third Grade Thoughts. The blog address is 3ftthirdgradethoughts.blogspot.ca. It can also be accessed from the Black Gold website at Robina Baker’s home page, Classroom connection.

Blog updates will be approximately once each week. It is a great place to check on current classroom events and links to internet sites being used in class.

Please be sure to fill in the blue sheet that is attached. Your email contact information is current as another way to keep in touch.

Please feel free to contact us at any time. Our email address is 3ftthirdgradethoughts@gmail.com.

We look forward to getting to know your child throughout this school year.

Mrs. M. Forchuk and Mrs. A. Tewitz