3FT Third Grade Thoughts: Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month! To kick off the unit we began a study on Shel Silverstein, a popular author and poet. We enjoyed listening to his book "The Giving Tree" and a few poems from his book "Falling Up".

We started learning about rebus poems, which are poems that use pictures instead of words. The poem "Deaf Donald" by Shel Silverstein was one example we read, along with a few nursery rhymes.

Then the students were then given a poetry activity that they had to complete the by using drawings instead of words. The also filled in a cryptogram puzzle about poems.

We also learned about Concrete Poetry which is similar to visual poetry but instead of using visual clues to reinforce meaning, it uses the actual arrangement of the words in a shape or other design to convey the subject or idea of the poem. We read Circle Road as an example.

We started a new novel for our daily read aloud. The students are enjoying "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" by Beverly Cleary. As we read, the students make predictions and discuss new vocabulary words. They are really working hard on their fluency and expression.

We also wrote about Spring Break and Easter celebrations. The students also completed a Spring Break News bulletin that will be added to their Memory Books.

In Math, the students have been working multiples and recognizing patterns in charts. They have worked through multiples of 2, 4, 6, and 8. Next week, we will focus on multiples of odd numbers.

They also learned a new multiplication game using dominoes.

In Social Studies, we started our study of Tunisia. We began by looking at the Coat of Arms for Tunisia. The students learned that the coat of arms of Tunisia displays a Punic galley (symbol of freedom) along with a lion holding a sword (symbol of order), and a weighing scale (symbol of justice). In the centre, just under the ship, is the national motto written in Arabic: Freedom (حرية) - Order (نظام) - Justice (عدالة).

We also looked at where Tunisia is on our World Map. It is a small country in North Africa. We discussed the flag and then we coloured and complete the first section in our lapbook.

The students are getting very excited for "Celebration of the Arts" next week. We started preparing a couple of projects that will be displayed on Thursday, April 12th from 5:00-7:00pm at the RBES Art Gala!

They were introduced to 3D shapes and given the opportunity to build and create their own masterpieces. You can see the finished projects on Thursday evening.

We also learned about the famous artist, Vincent Van Gogh. We worked together as a class to completed a mural of his painting "Sunflowers". The students used chalk pastels and were taught how to blend the colours to make the flowers look more realistic. They did such a wonderful job! The completed mural will be displayed for you to enjoy at the Art Gala!