The students quickly settled into their new classroom and we spent a great deal of time talking about expectations in Grade 3. As a class, we have had many discussions about the rules around the school. The students also helped us come up with all of the ways to be a great classmate. A discussion about student jobs and teacher jobs was also a focus of this week.
We were fortunate to start our school year off with performer, Mary Lambert! She was so much fun and had the whole school up and dancing for most of the show!
We have spent a lot of time getting to know each other. We feel this is very important in order to create a comfortable environment and close bond between our students. We had a lot of "Cozy Carpet" time, sharing stories. We also completed a web activity to show our similarities and differences. This activity showed the kids that we may have things in common with others and are not even aware of it. We are all very different and unique and that is okay too!
We read the books, "Fill a Bucket" and "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?". These books do a great job of explaining how being kind to others makes you feel good inside. Students then worked on an activity to describe what kinds of things make them smile.
Of course, all of the students were eager to share their summer vacation stories with the class. To help them with this, we guided them through one of their first writing activities in Grade 3. We started by reading the story, "How I Spent My Summer Vacation" by Mark Teague. Students were then asked to write about one favourite summer memory. They completed a "sloppy copy" and then a published copy with an illustration.
Our Home Reading Program is called "The Amazing Race". A letter explaining the program was sent home on Thursday. We weren't planning on sending the letter home so soon, but the class was VERY excited to get started! This week, they worked on colouring their planes in order to prepare for their race around the world!
A few routines were started this week which will be carried on throughout the year. On a daily basis our class will be doing "Read to Self", "Read to Someone" or "Listen to Reading". These are all components of the Daily 5 program. The students will choose a book and find a cozy spot in the classroom for quiet reading. Daily reading is very important in our classroom. It also gives us the opportunity to read with small groups or individuals.
Once a week, the students will also be completing a welcome activity called "Morning Message". This week, the students were just getting use to copying from the Smart Board. Next week, they will start copying a message containing many spelling and punctuation errors. They think it is great to edit teacher's work as we usually throw in some funny mistakes. They also enjoy the challenge. At the end of the activity, the number of mistakes are counted and it usually turns some kind of Math lesson as the students find different ways to break apart the number using addition, subtraction and then later on in the year, multiplication and division. This morning activity really helps the students identify mistakes in their own writing. They become much better at editing their own work before asking us to help them correct their "sloppy copies".
We also started "Mad Minutes". This will become part of our daily routine. Students will have two minutes to complete a set of thirty questions. They will complete that set 3 days in a row and then we will begin a new set. The "Mad Minutes" will be marked together as a class and then they will graph their own results. These will be sent home every Friday with their graph so that you can see how they are doing. We will start with the addition sets and then move on to subtraction, multiplication and division.
We read, "Mapping Penny's World" and the students were introduced to their first unit in Social, "Mapping". We will be learning how to read a map, use a compass and learn where we live in relation to the rest of the world before we begin studying other countries.
Our first Art project of the year was based on a book called "The Squiggle". Students were then given a "squiggle" and using their imaginations had to create a picture. We have some creative kids in our room!
Our birthday board is up! We will celebrate each birthday with a song and a little treat from 3B. If you would like to send in a special treat for the class, please let us know by email. Thank you!
We are sure the kids are exhausted from their first week back! Rest lots and have a wonderful long weekend!
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